Messages of God's Love: 1900

12.Quote the verse where these words are found; “How often would I have gathered thy children together as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings”!

13.What did the man say, who found the sheep he had lost?

14.What did the multitude of the heavenly host say, as they were praising God at the birth of Jesus?

15.What did Jesus say to Satan, when he tempted Him to cast Himself down from the pinnacle of the temple?

16.What was rent in the midst when Jesus died?

17.How many years had the woman the “spirit of infirmity” to whom Jesus said, “Woman thou art loosed from thine infirmity”?

18.What City was Jesus near, when He raised to life again the only son of a widow?

E. B. H.

ML 01/07/1900

The Door of Escape.

But what of the poor dying girl? Did she accept at once the shelter provided for her? No, not at once; and on the next day the visitor found the same look of anguish on her brow. Again she spoke of Christ, and again she repeated the simple words—

I will believe, I do believe,

That Jesus died for me;

That on the cross He shed His blood,

From sin to set me free.

Once more the sufferer followed them silently, and again they parted.

Early the following morning the servant of Christ was at the gate again, hardly daring to gaze at the windows, lest they should tell the tale that all was over; but it was not so, and once more she hastened to the bed of death. Anxiously enough she fixed her eyes upon the young face where Death was already setting his ashy seal; but as she looked on it she smiled, for no words could ever describe the gaze of deep and holy joy with which those eyes met hers.

“You are not afraid to die now?” she cried, rejoicingly.

Earnestly and solemnly the dying girl moved her head from side to side, while the fair face spoke, in a language all its own, of a peace “that passeth all understanding.”

Ah! it needed no second glance to see that that poor, frightened, guilty soul had found, in the living Door, the shelter that it needed. Just a few words of thanksgiving, just the unfolding of a promise or two, and those redeemed ones parted, to meet no more till the dead in Christ shall arise, “and they that are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” 1 Thess. 4 :17.

They parted, and fast the deep flood rose around the dying girl. Did she fear it? No, she was safe; from the shelter of her Saviour’s arms she could gaze unterrified at the waters that would never touch her. Death was her servant now; he could but bear her to the presence of a Father God. Was she in herself a bit less guilty? Not the least; but she had accepted her Saviour’s death instead of hers; she saw that it was enough to satisfy God’s judgment against sin; and so all fear was gone; nay, more than that, joy had taken its place. She could say,

“Thou art my hiding place; Thou shalt preserve me from trouble, Thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance.”

Just at the very last the power of speech returned to her, and she called her parents and her young brothers to her side, and warned them to escape as she had done; then as the deep waves she no longer feared rolled in betwixt her and them, they heard her sing with her passing breath—

I will believe, I do believe,

That Jesus died for me;

That on the cross He shed His blood,

From sin to set me free.

That was a “song of deliverance,” was it not?

But did those she loved escape, too? Yes; more than a year afterwards, a working man called at the house where the young lady lived, to tell her that his wife —the poor girl’s mother—had gone home the same way; and as he spoke of her triumphant departure, he drew his rough hand over his eyes, and added, in a low tone, “It’s been a blessing to us all Miss, and me and the lads is quite different now.”

I hope you, my dear readers, will not wait till your death-bed to escape, because many are cut off suddenly and never have a death-bed.—Selected.

ML 01/07/1900

"Thou God Seest Me."

Whatever you say, in a whisper or clear,
Say nothing you would not like Jesus to hear,
Whatever you read, though the page may allure,
Read nothing of which you are perfectly sure
Consternation at once would be seen in your look,
If God should say, solemnly, “Show Me that book!”
Whatever you write, in haste or with heed,
Write nothing you would not like Jesus to read.
Whatever you sing, in the midst of your glees,
Sing nothing that God’s listening ear could displease.
Turn away from each pleasure you’d shrink from pursuing
Were God to look down and say,—
“What are you doing?”

Extract.

ML 01/07/1900

Animals of the Bible.

The Hart and the Hind.

Dear Children:—

If you have read and profited by the lessons God teaches us in His word about the animals we have already considered; if you have owned yourselves unclean, as the ass and needing to be redeemed by blood; if you have, like the cony, found a refuge—even Christ, our Rock—you will be ready to listen to what God has to say to you about the hart and the hind; for in them we find pictured what should characterize a child of God.

The hart is the male, and the hind the female of the red deer. So I write of them as one.

In Ps. 18:31-33, you find these words, “Who is God save the Lord? or who is a rock save our God? It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places.” Do you know what kind of feet the hind has? It has a parted hoof, with which it can walk with ease upon the rocks and crags, far above the plain. It is fitted by God for the “high places.” And so is everyone who is born from above. David says, “He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet.” It is not natural to us. No, by nature we are in the mire and the sloughs of the pleasures and sins of this evil world; but again the Psalmist says, “He brought me up ——out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock.” Ps. 40:2.

“On Christ the solid Rock I stand. All ether ground is sinking sand.”

If you have found Christ as your own Saviour, you can say, with the prophet; “The Lord God is my strength and He will make my feet like hinds’ feet and He will make me to walk upon my high, places.” Hab. 3:19.

And now, dear ones, if God has raised us up, and lifted our feet out of the mire, and set us upon a rock, what is becoming in ns but to “walk worthy” of our “high calling”? Shall we come down to the world’s plains for our pleasures and our associates? Oh no! hinds’ feet are not suited to the plain; they would sink in the mud. Let us remember we are called from above, born from above, to have our affections on things above, and to wait for the Lord from heaven. May this be true of each of us —reader and writer—is the earnest prayer of your friend.

E. G. B.

Next week we will look at the hart.

ML 01/07/1900

Echoes From the Sunday School.

“WHY do you love Jesus?” I asked some children. One said,

“Because He is my Saviour.” Another, “Because He died for me.” Another, “Because He died to save sinners.” The last answer was, “Because He loved me first.”

Yes, dear little readers, all our love is only in response to His love—love so great that He left His heavenly home and came down to this poor, wicked world to die for us. And now, as God’s word says, “We love Him because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:19.

ML 01/07/1900

"If This Book Is True, We Are Lost."

THERE was an honest man, a Roman Catholic, who had never read the Bible. Someone gave him a copy. He began to read it.

After a while he said; “Wife, if this book is true, we are wrong.” It showed him he was a great sinner, and he became alarmed.

“Wife,” he said, “if this book is true, we are lost.” Still he continued to read, and after a time he saw the wondrous salvation God had to offer, and at last he exclaimed, “Wife, if this is true, we are safe!” Extract.

ML 01/07/1900

Animals of the Bible.

THE HART.

“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God.” Psalms 42:1.

We see here another mark of one who has come to God.

The one who knows Christ needs not the stagnant pools of the plain; no, nothing will do for him but the fountain of living water.

The hart pants for the water brooks—running, or living water. Jesus stood and cried, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.” John 7:37. Sad, indeed, it is, if any of God’s dear children turn from the living water to quench their thirst with the pleasure of this poor world. Then must the Lord say sorrowfully of them, as of His people of old: “My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, —broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” Jer. 2:13. Oh, let us be like the hart! Let us say to the Lord; “All my springs are in Thee.” Ps. 87:7. “He shall drink of the brook in the way; therefore shall he lift up the head.” Ps. 110:7. E. G. B.

ML 01/14/1900

"Behold, I Come Quickly."

Twice over, dear children, these words are uttered in one chapter, the last chapter of the Bible. I wonder how many of you can take your Bibles and find them. You will find them in the 7th and 12Th verses. I want you to look at the 20th verse also. There the blessed Lord Jesus says,

“Surely I come quickly.”

Now there is another verse I want you to look at. You will find it in the 25th Chapter of Matthew. It is the 13th verse. There the Lord Jesus says,

“Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour.”

Yes, again and again, He tells us He is coming quickly, and He says He will SURELY come quickly, and He wants us to be ready.

Now let me ask you, if you are ready. Have your sins been forgiven? Have you been washed in the blood of Jesus? If not, you are not ready. And do you know Jesus might come before you finish reading this paper? Oh! how terrible it would be, if you were not ready. Will you not, then, confess your sins to God, just now, and accept Jesus as your Saviour. You would then be able to say, “Come, Lord Jesus,”

Let me tell you about two girls, who had been hearing some preaching about the Lord’s coming, and who got troubled about not being ready.

One evening their parents went out to make a call, and left them in the house with some younger children. While their parents were out, they got to speaking together about the Lord’s coming, and they began to think the Lord might come before their parents got back, and that they would be left behind because they were not ready. They were in great distress about it; and when their parents returned, they found them crying. They wanted to be saved, and they did not want to be left behind when the Lord came. Well, their parents spoke to them about Jesus, the Saviour, and told them, if they believed in Jesus, and got their sins forgiven through faith in His blood, they would be saved, and when Jesus came He would take them along with all true Christians. These two girls believed, and were saved, and then they were no longer afraid, but could rejoice, because they would go to be with Him, if He came.

Now, dear children, will you not also do like these two girls, if you are not already saved? Confess your sins to God, believe in Jesus, believe in His precious blood which was shed for your sins and you will be saved, and He will take you when He comes.

A.H. R.

ML 01/14/1900

A Peep at Some Squirrels.

Did you ever see a flying squirrel? Perhaps you have seen little squirrels in their cages, and you may have seen them flying round in their wheels with lightning-like rapidity; but the flying squirrel has two little flaps on its sides that look something like wings, and it can spread these out and gradually hover down, as a leaf would gently fall to the ground. It is, no doubt, God’s wonderful provision for it.

Come with me for a few minutes, and let us look into a cage where two of these little flying creatures have their home. Now they are out on the wheel, running and jumping, leaping over one another, having their games on the wheel as it flies about; now they run back through a little round opening into the other part of their cage; another moment, and with a nimble spring they are up in their bedroom which swings above their sitting room, or dining room, on the first floor. Up and down, and in and out, they go, frolicking with apparently as much enjoyment as lively boys and girls set free from the restraints of the school-room.

But it is after the sun goes down and night comes on that these little creatures are so active and full of life. Running, jumping, eating—all night long they go. And what do they do when day light comes? Take a peep into their cage and you will find them quietly cuddled down in their upstairs room. If it should be cold weather they will have the piece of flannel, which their kind mistress has given them, dragged up to their sleeping bunk, and nicely spread over them and tucked under to keep them snug and warm. They seem to know better how to take care of themselves than little boys and girls often do. There they will lie all day long, and when evening comes; up they will jump and begin their gambols.

But let us look into another and larger cage which stands nearby. Here are two little chipmunks. Boys and girls who live in the country have, many of them, seen these pretty little squirrels, with their bushy tails, as they ran up and down the trees, or jumped from branch to branch, and from tree to tree, or as they whisked along the road. But here are two in a cage. They are different from their little winged neighbors; for they sleep in the night and frolic in the day time. Now, put an acorn in between the wires and see how quickly one of the little “chips” takes it, and how nimbly he turns it round and round, biting as he turns, until very soon the shell has all dropped off, and the inside of the acorn has disappeared, but where? Give him another acorn, and now watch sharply, else you will not see. While he quickly turns it round, biting off the shell, take a glance at his face—one cheek is puffed out but the other is not; now look—so quick you can scarcely see it, and the acorn is gone; and, now the other cheek is puffed out! Give him another acorn and see what, he will do, for now both cheeks are full. Ah! he is ready for a third; round and round it goes; in another minute it is in his mouth and with a nimble hop and jump he has found his way to his little upper room; he quickly deposits his precious store in one corner of it, and with empty mouth and cheeks, down he comes, ready to receive again, and lay by for the time when acorns cannot be gathered.

Now give him some bread and milk. Ah! he makes his breakfast on that. He seems to know that it will not do to store that away.

What lessons can we learn from this; for there are many lessons to be learned from watching the ways of the creatures God has made. We can see God’s care for the little squirrels in making them so fleet that dogs and other enemies cannot overtake them; and in making them so agile that they can quickly mount any tree and, jumping from limb to limb, and from tree to tree, can find nuts and acorns upon which to feed. Our first lesson then will be to praise God for His goodness and His care towards His creatures.

But I think we can learn another lesson from the squirrels. God has given them wisdom, so that they lay by their food in its season, and when the cold winter days come and no nuts are to be found, they have only to go to their storehouse under the ground, or up in some hollow tree, and feast upon what has been garnered in. But how did the little chipmunks, shut up in the cage, get their food? It was handed to them and they had only to receive it, but with the sagacity that God had given them, they stored it away.

Now, dear boys and girls, how can you lay by in store for the time to come? All! God is making provision for you. He has given His well-beloved Son. Do you receive Him? Have you accepted Christ as your Saviour? If so, not only have you food now, but you will have a wonderful store garnered in—a store upon which you can feast, and which you will enjoy for all eternity.

ML 01/14/1900

The Blackbird's Song.

Little blackbird on the bough,

Hopping in the apple tree,

Will you please to whistle now?

I will all attention be,

For I love to hear your song,

When you warble sweet and clear.

What a little happy throng

All you merry birds appear.

Always flying overhead,

Loving in the sky to roam;

Don’t you ever earn your bread

For the little ones at home?

Master blackbird rubs his beak

On the bough and plumes his crest,

Just as though he’s going to speak;

Surely he will try his best,

“God who gave these little wings,

Swiftly through the air to skim,

Keeps us merry happy things

Always singing unto Him.

Not a bit of care have we;

Little birds don’t make a fuss:

We are full of song and glee,

God it is who cares for us!

So we spend the sunny hours,

Merry warblers of the wood;

Nestling in our leafy bowers,

Praising Him who gives us food.

Very early in the morn,

When the dew the meadow fills,

Straying worms upon the lawn

Catch we with our yellow bills;

Or upon the window ledge,

Busy buzzing flies we catch;

Or the berries from the hedge,

Stored up in the cottage thatch.

He who made the glorious sun,

Feeds the cattle and the herds:

He who made the rivers run,

Don’t forget His little birds.

Daily unto Him we look;

He supplies our simple needs:

Gives us water from the brook,

And an ample store of seeds.

Softest feathers line our nest

(Hidden from the robber’s eye),

Where our little ones can rest

Till they’re old enough to fly.

But my partner with her brood,

May be thinking I am long

Fetching tiny bits of food

For our little hungry throng,

And the happy, merry bird

Seemed to say as off he flew,

“Little ones who know His, word,

Mind and learn to trust Him too.

He who cares for little birds,

Flying in the meadows wild;

He who feeds the flocks and herds,

Careth for a little child.”

G.C.

ML 01/14/1900

Pardoned.

It was on the 29th of May, 1779, more than a hundred years ago, that a solemn and an impressive scene was enacted at the Castle Hill, Edinburgh.

The garrison was assembled; and with muffled drums beating, three Highlanders marched behind their coffins, from the citadel.

Though it was a beautiful summer morning, a dark cloud rested on the scene, for these three soldiers were to die. An officer read the sentence, which set forth that, at a court-martial, the three men were accused of the crime of mutiny, and of inciting others to the same; they had been found guilty, and sentenced to be shot to death.

Here I would pause, and ask you, my unsaved reader, do you know that you, too, have been found guilty? If you turn to the third of Romans, you will find your indictment, from the 9th to the 18th verse; and in the 19th the verdict, “guilty before God;” and the sentence is death, “everlasting destruction.” (2 Thess. 1:9.) Eternal judgment may overtake you at any moment.

The men knelt down, their eyes being bandaged; the firing party were drawn up, and were taking aim, when Sir Adolphus Oughton stepped to the front, and displayed three pardons, saying, “In consequence of the gallantry displayed by the 42nd Regiment, to which two of the prisoners belong, His Majesty has graciously pardoned all three. Soldiers, resume your arms, and rejoin your companies.” The now freed prisoners essayed to raise a cheer, but one of them, overcome by emotion and weakness, sank prostrate on the ground, between the coffins.

This short story seems to present a striking type of the state of the sinner, and the grace of God. The condition of the three soldiers was desperate. Exemplary conduct, after sentence was passed, could not avail them. The law had been broken, and its majesty must be satisfied.

Death was the sentence, and no efforts of the men could avert it; only one thing could meet their case, and that was a free and unconditional pardon. And mark, too, the grounds on which it was granted; namely, the brave conduct of their comrades in the presence, of the enemy. A pardon granted through the merits of others. Mark, also, the wonderful change produced by it. One moment at the point of death, and the next, accredited soldiers of the king.

There is a pardon procured for sinners, all through the merits of another. Will you turn again to the third of Romans, and read it for yourself, from the 23rd to the 26th verse? Wonderful words;

God is “just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus.”

You and I had failed to fulfil that which was required of us; but on the cross another has done a work through which all who own their guilt and need, and believe on the Lord Jesus, receive forgiveness full and free.

Will you have the pardon? Will you receive it from the One who righteously forgives, and who will make thee a son, an heir of glory, a joint-heir with Christ? I beseech you, do not trifle with it. If you refuse God’s offer, then justice must take its course. God’s word offers you no other way. How shall you escape if you neglect so great Salvation?

ML 01/21/1900

"I Have His Word for It."

IRVING P— had been listening to the gospel address about the poor woman, who had been healed of her terrible disease, by touching the hem of the Lord’s garment. (Mark 5:33.) As he listened to the story of God’s wondrous love in sending His beloved Son into this world, to seek, and to save poor sinners, he was led to see that he needed just such a Saviour, for he knew he had sinned against God, and had done “evil in His sight.”

After the address, he was spoken to about his soul, and in response, expressed a desire to be saved that night. As the work of the Lord Jesus was unfolded to him, he accepted Christ by simple faith, who had loved him, and died for him on the cross, that by the shedding of His most precious blood, all his sins might be washed away.

As he was leaving the Gospel Hall for home, a Christian asked him, “How is it with you tonight, Irving?” He said, “I am saved.” “How do you know it?” was then asked. He answered, “I have His word for it, ‘He that believeth on the Son bath everlasting life.’” John 3:36.

Now, my dear young reader, you will see in that chapter, that after the woman had touched the hem of the Lord’s garment, she felt in her body that she was healed of her plague.

Now, if she had gone home right after touching the Lord’s coat, she would not have had abiding peace, because she might fear that the disease might come upon her again. She had no word to rest her faith upon, only the feeling. The Lord did not intend her to leave His presence with just a feeling, so He turned Himself about, and looked upon her, which led her, with fear and trembling, to fall down before Him, and tell Him all the truth. Then Jesus said unto her, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole, go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.” Thus after Jesus had spoken she had not only the feeling, but His word to rest upon. So it was with dear P—, he not only had the joy that night of being saved from wrath to come, through the precious blood of Jesus, but he also had Jesus’ word, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.”

No doubt, my young reader, you have heard of Jesus, like the poor diseased woman, from your beloved parents, in the Sunday-school class, and at the gospel meetings, but have you come to Him as one that needs Him? You do need Him much, for you are a lost sinner.

The falsehoods you have told, the disobedience to your parents, and the many covered up sins you have committed are all before God.

What a solemn, thing it is, my dear young friend, thus to stand guilty before God; and also, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Should the Lord come while you are reading this paper, all would be over, the day of grace closed and your soul unsaved.

Oh! then come to Christ just now, this very moment, as a guilty sinner, for He hath said; “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out;” and “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.”

Make it a personal matter, like that woman did. “For God so loved the world, (you) that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever (you) believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” May salvation come to you, today, for, the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost, and may you be able to say by believing that precious word, “I am saved, I have His word for it.”

Sn.

ML 01/21/1900

"I Know That 'Whosoever' Means Me."

It was a cold stormy day when I found my way to the house of a poor old woman who had been on her bed for 18 years, unable to move any part of her body, but her head. She lived 8 miles from any town, and because she was so bad, she was very seldom visited by any one. I was told all about her before I went, but I was anxious to tell her about Jesus dying for her, so I went to her house. She lived in a log house some distance from the road. All the path I could see leading to it, was what was made in the deep snow by two little pair of feet. The snow was very deep around the door and everything looked as though nobody cared for the poor old woman. As I reached the door I heard the voice of a little girl about 12 years old speaking cross, and threatening to do her grandmother harm. I opened the door and walked in, and I saw the little girl and her younger sister looking very unkind. I said to the little girls, “What are you going to do to poor old grandma.” They said, “Granny is so cross to us and scolds us all the time we are here and we can’t please her.” I don’t suppose they would have hurt the poor old body, but they thought if they would frighten her she might not be so cross. The poor sick woman did not tell me she was glad I came, but I think she was, for she seemed frightened when I went in. I was soon having a nice talk with her about the Lord Jesus. At first she said, “There is no salvation for a wicked old woman as I,” and then she told me a minister had called to see her once, and told her she was too bad to be saved. I am sure the little boys and girls who read for themselves or have this paper read to them, know that this minister was wrong, for none are too bad to be saved if they only believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour. So I opened the Bible and read a number of verses to her. One of them was John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” When I spoke to her of the word “whosoever” she said, “Well, that means me,” and as I went on to speak of the love of God to poor sinners in sending Jesus to die, I could see the tears roll down her wrinkled cheeks, and I felt her heart was reached so I spoke to her of her sins. She said, “I know they are very many and that is why I thought I could never be forgiven.” Was she not wrong, dear little ones, in having such thoughts? After I had prayed with her I left, asking God that His word would bring blessing to the poor old sufferer. Almost a year had gone by before I could call upon her again; and when I did everything was changed. The house was clean, three of her neighbors were in and she had the best of care, so I said, “Grandma, what has brought about such a change?” “Ah, Sir,” she said, “it is that 16th verse of John 3. I know that ‘whosoever’ means me and I know my sins are all forgiven.” It was not long after my second visit that I heard she had gone to be with the Lord, and that she was happy to the last. May all you little readers find the peace this old sufferer found through believing in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, is our earnest prayer.

“A little child of seven.

Or even three or four;

May learn the way to heaven

Through Christ, the open door.”

E. B. H.

ML 01/21/1900

The Coastguardsman's Little Daughter.

I have heard of a dear little girl, whose father is a Coastguardsman, who; after attending a children’s service in a village on the sea-shore, became very anxious about herself. She was told that, although she could not get rid of one of her sins, whatever she did, the Lord Jesus could, and would, take them all away, if she came to Him. She was urged just to trust in Jesus at once; as there never would be so good and easy a time in her life to become a Christian. That night the little girl trusted Jesus to save her. She believed that His blood was shed upon the cross to wash away her sins, and from that moment her face was bright and happy.

ML 01/21/1900

True to Christ

THE Lord Jesus said to the multitude, “Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:33). This Scripture is illustrated by the following extract, which speaks of a Christian carrier and his wife.

“John Brown, a poor carrier, known as ‘The Christian Carrier,’ lived in the reign of James the Second. One day, when in the act of cutting turf, he was seized by the soldiers of Claverhouse, the well-known persecutor of God’s people in those days, brought before the judge, rapidly examined, convicted of nonconformity, and sentenced to death. Claverhouse ordered him to go on his knees, as he must immediately die. Thereupon, Brown, without any remonstrance, knelt down, and proceeded to pray in terms so touching for his wife, who was present, and their children, that Claverhouse, seeing the hard eyes of the dragoons beginning to moisten and their hands tremble, thrice interrupted him with volleys of blasphemy. When the prayer was ended, John turned to his wife, and reminding her that the day was come of which he had told her, when he first proposed marriage to her, asked her if she was willing to part with him.

“‘Heartily willing,’ was the reply.

“‘This,’ he said, ‘is all I desire. I have nothing more to do now than to die.’ He then kissed her, and also the children, and said, ‘May all purchased and promised blessings be multiplied unto you.’

“‘No more of this!’ roared Claverhouse, whose iron nerve this scene was beginning to move. ‘You six dragoons there, fire on the fanatic!’

“They stood motionless—the prayer had quelled them. Fearing a mutiny, both among the soldiers and in his own heart, Claverhouse snatched a pistol from his belt and shot the good man through the head. He fell his brains spurting out, and the brave wife catching his shattered head in her lap.

“‘What do you think of your husband now?’ said the murderer.

“‘I aye thought muckle of him, sir,’ she answered, ‘but never sae muckle as I do this day.’”

Here, dear reader, was true discipleship—faithfulness to the Lord Jesus at all cost, The, dear man gave up his wife, and his children, and his own life without a murmur.” Christ was all to Him. All that was precious to him on earth he confided to the Lord, and was ready to seal his testimony with his blood.

And the dear wife was “heartily willing” to give up her husband for the sake of Christ, and could tell the blaspheming murderer she always thought much of her husband, but never so much as she did that day, when his faithfulness unto death was made manifest.

Dear converted reader, shall we not earnestly seek this unswerving devotedness to Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood?

H. R.

ML 01/28/1900

Story of a Sheep, or How to be Useful.

A FARMER, told me the following incident, which I think helps to illustrate how to be useful to others. It also gives us the secret of true happiness for the children of God. This is a story for the children of God. If we are not His children, that is the first thing we need. We cannot be Christ’s servants till we ourselves are saved, as it is written

“This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.” (John 6:29).

A snowstorm had come on, and the snow gathered in a drift over the gate of a field where the farmer had his sheep. He wanted to get them home to his barn, to feed and shelter them there. So first tramping a path through the drift for the sheep to get out, he next tried to drive them through it, but the sheep were frightened. He could get them up close to the snow, then they would run back again to where they had been before. My friend, the farmer, who knew the Lord, was one of the Lord’s sheep and knew His tender care, said to himself, “I will lead them.” Down he went among them, talking and petting them. One that was a great pet and showed most affection, he singled out to take the lead. Calling it by its name, he got it to follow him up to the snow-bank, then with encouraging words and kindnesses he entered the snowy path, his pet sheep close at his heels, and in a line behind it, the rest came trooping along, and were soon feeding in the nice snug shelter, safe and warm.

Now read John 12:20. “If any man serve Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My servant be; if any man serve Me, him will My Father honor.’’

You see how the Lord wants our service, but our company is needed, too. Did you ever think, the Lord wants your company? Well, it is true, and if we are walking in communion with Him, you may be sure we will both be happy and useful, without our trying to be anything before others. How was the sheep helping others? By going with the shepherd itself.

See how that lad in John 6:9 was able to help thousands. It just looks as if he had come to spend all day with Jesus, and his barley loaves fed thousands. He put all into Jesus hands and the blessed Lord did the rest. Do you say, I know My Saviour and would like to serve Him? Well, dear children, just remember He is with you all day. And you are not poor orphans, for, John 14:18, “I will not leave you orphans: I will come to you,” means that the Lord is with us now. Just keep close to Him, He will help you, and without your knowing it, other sheep and lambs of Christ will be led nearer to their shepherd, to walk in His paths.

When we were sinners, we were lost and helpless, and Christ had to be our Saviour and Lord. Now that we are saved, we need Him for strength and grace every day.

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him.—Col. 2:6

“Without Me ye can do nothing.” John 15:5

ML 01/28/1900

A Word to Children.

I want you to listen attentively while I ask you a question. What would you think of me if I saw you in some great danger and did not try at all to save you? You would feel I was very unkind, I am sure. But perhaps you will say, “Ah! but I am not in danger.” Are you quite sure of that, dear children? Think a moment. You all know, that a long while ago there was a terrible flood, when the waters covered all the earth, and no one was saved except Noah and his family. And why were they saved?

“Oh,” you say, “because they went into the ark.” Yes, that is quite true, Well, now, have you never heard that just as that flood came in Noah’s time, so there is judgment coming on this very world in which we live; and just as it was God who had saved Noah in the ark, so now God will save you from the storm if you go to the Lord Jesus for safety?

You know God told Noah to go into the ark, but now He tells you and me to go to His Son, the Lord Jesus. God does not tell us to go into an ark of wood, but He tells us that He loves us so much that He has sent His own dear Son for us, and now if we trust to Him He will save us, and forgive all the naughty things we have ever done. God’s Son, the Lord Jesus, really took our punishment for all those naughty things. Oh, don’t you think He loved us very, very much? Yes, He did; and as you read or listen to this, He knows what you think about this wonderful love. Will you not really come to Him as your own Saviour? He is coming very soon, and after that it will be too late, for the storm will come then, as the flood did long ago, and all who have not come to Christ, the Ark of safety, will be lost.

ML 01/28/1900

Saved From Death.

At the sea-side, boys often climb up the face of the cliffs and sometimes are unable, after getting up a distance, to get either up or down.

I remember seeing a boy in this position on the Devonshire coast. He, like many others, thought he could climb from the shore to the top of the cliff, but when half-way up he could make no further progress, and now he found he could not get down either.

A rope from above was of no avail; he could only hold fast to the rocks and shout for help. If he let go to grasp the rope he might fall to the bottom and be greatly injured, even if he did not lose his life.

Just then the boy’s father came along, and seeing his son’s plight, began himself to go up to help him if possible. We watched him as he stepped from rock to rock, but he could not get very far, and soon gave it up. He could not save the boy.

By this time the lad was quite tired of clinging to the cliffs, and feeling that his feet might slip at any moment, he began to shout, “Save me! Save me!”

Oh, how thankful we then were to see a boat row up to the spot, and two or three sailors jump out of it. They were used to climbing, and soon reached the boy, who was almost ready to drop to the ground with fatigue; but they were just in time, and little by little they brought him down the face of the cliff, till at last we saw him standing safely on the beach.

Now you can easily see that in order to save the boy from falling and to help him down, two things were necessary.

The will to do it, and the power to do it. The father wished to help his boy, and he did what he could, but he had not really the power, and if no other help had come his son must have perished.

But oh, how different it was with the sailors. They had both the heart and the power.

They were not only able to go to his rescue, but they were willing also, and so the boy was saved.

Now I have told you this story to once more illustrate what every boy and girl wants in order to save them from falling under the judgment due to their sins. We all need One who is both able and willing to save us.

Do you remember a man who came to the Lord Jesus, and said to Him, “If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean”? How quickly Jesus said to him, “I will, be thou clean.”

He is the One, dear children, I wish to direct you to who is “able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by Him.” Heb. 7:25.

Will you go to Him and tell Him your great, great need of a Saviour, and you will find He is not only able but willing to save you.

“MY LITTLE FRIEND.”

“Faith in Christ will save me;

Trust in Him the risen One,

Trust the work that He has done;

To His arms I now, may run,

Faith in Christ will save me.”

ML 01/28/1900

Answers to Questions of Dec. 3rd, 1899.

1. “Herodias,” Mark 6:22

2. “Elias.” 9:4

3.“How hardly shall they, etc.” 10:23

4.“Are ye come out, as against, etc.” 14:48

5.“Thou art the Christ.” 8:29

6.“Hail, King of the Jews!” 15:18

7.“David.” 2:25

8.“Olives,” 11:1

9.“No man eat fruit of thee, etc.” 11:14

10.“Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” 15:34

11.“Ah, Thou that destroyest, etc.” 15:29

12.“Lord I believe; help Thou, etc.” 9:24

13.“Let her alone, etc.” 14:6

14.“Thou art the Son of God.” 3:11

15.“Hosanna; Blessed is He, etc.” 11:9

16.“If Thou wilt, Thou canst.” 1:40

17.“Nazareth.” 1:9

18.“Cadarenes.” 5:1

19.“Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” 2:5

20.“Who touched My clothes?” 5:30

21.“Elias.” 15:35

22.“Levi.” 2:14

23.“Lord, that I might receive, etc.” 10:51

The first letter of each answer spells, “He hath done all things well.” Mark 7:37.

Bible questions for February.

The answers to these questions are to be found in the gospel of John, and the first letter of each answer when put together will spell the first part of the verse which says “the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.”

1.What other name had Judas?

2.Give the three words coming together seven times in chapter 16.

3.Who was it that said, “Sir, if thou have borne Him hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him”?

4.How many baskets full of fragments were taken up, after so many were fed from the five barley loaves?

5.What was the first question the woman at Jacob’s well asked Jesus?

6.Give the name of one whom the people asked John the Baptist if he was that person?

7.Give the name that means, “the place of a skull”?

8.A mount where Jesus went, when all others had gone to their own houses?

9.Who said, “never man spake like this man”?

10.What other name had Thomas?

11.What country did the woman belong to, who met Jesus at Jacob’s well?

12.What did the people say, as they took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet Jesus?

13.When the disciples told Thomas, after Jesus arose from the dead, that they had seen the Lord, what did he say?

14.What is the name of the one who scourged Jesus?

15.What did Jesus say to those who brought a woman into the temple, to Him?

16.What does the Lord Jesus give to His sheep?

17.What did Nathanael say, when Jesus told him He saw him under the fig tree?

18.What question did Jesus ask the man, whose eyes He opened, after they had cast him out of the synagogue?

ML 02/04/1900

"My Word Shall Not Pass Away."

THERE never was a book in this world half so much opposed as the Bible, and which so many persons have tried hard to destroy; and yet in spite of all (through God’s goodness) we are still privileged to have it, and can read it without fear. This was not always so. During the first three hundred years after Jesus was here on earth, the emperors of Rome tried all they could to destroy it, and keep people from becoming Christians. They got up ten long, dreadful persecutions against the Bible and those who read it; some of those persecutions lasted for ten years at a time, and during that fearful period all the power of the Roman government was directed against the Bible. During one of these persecutions, in one single country, one hundred and fifty thousand Christians were put to death.

Sometimes a house was tilled with Christians, and faggots were piled all-round the outside, and set tire to, and all were burnt alive. Sometimes companies of fifty were bound together and driven into the sea.

The Roman emperor built a huge theatre, which would hold more than twenty thousand people. It was built in the form of a circle, with seats, like a gallery, all round, rising to the top of the high walls. In the center was a large open space, with iron railings about it. Sometimes the cruel emperor would have a number of Christians put into that big sort of cage, and then would let fierce, hungry lions and tigers tear them to pieces and eat them alive, twenty thousand people sitting round and looking on as though it were sport. And so Christians by the thousands were butchered to make a Roman holiday.

One day a Christian man was being led to this dreadful place. The soldier who had charge of him said: “My friend, how easily you can save your life! Give up reading that book, and you need not be food for the lions.”

“I cannot give up my Bible,” said he, “because I am a Christian. Eternal life is in that book; and lions or no lions, I cannot give it up,” and thus he went to a martyr’s death.

The Roman emperors tried every way to destroy the Bible. One of them; Diocletian, thought he had done it. He had killed so many Christians, and destroyed so many Bibles, that because the Bible-lovers were quiet for awhile and hid themselves, he proudly had a medal struck off, with this on it, as a motto: “The Christian religion is destroyed, and the worship of the gods restored.”

Suppose that Diocletian could come back to earth now, and see the Bible going through all the nations of the world, I wonder what he would think of his famous medal!—Selected.

“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.”—Matt. 24:35.

ML 02/04/1900

The Coming of the Lord.

In Matt. 25:1-13, the Lord Jesus tells us a beautiful story and we may be sure that He meant to teach by it an important lesson. All the virgins “slumbered and slept.” This was not right, for we learn from verse 13 that we are to watch. However, when the cry was made, “Behold the bridegroom,” they all arose and trimmed their lamps, but only the five wise virgins, who had oil in their lamps, were ready, and went in with the bridegroom to the wedding feast. The five foolish virgins were not ready, and when they came to the door they found it shut. What a scene is here presented! Within, all is light, and for all the happy wedding guests, there is feasting and music and merry making; without, in the darkness, is heard the hopeless cry of the foolish virgins, “Lord, Lord, open to us.”

Now if you read the first three verses of John 14, you will see what the Lord would have us looking forward to He tells us that He is gone to prepare a place for us and that He is coming again to receive us to Himself. All, who love the Lord, and know His word, are saying to themselves every day, “Jesus is coming, and He may come today.” Do you not think it was very good of the Lord Jesus to give His people such a hope ere He went away from this earth? If you want very interesting details about the coming of the Lord, study 1 Thess. 4:13-18. You will find many other passages that point to the same glad hope, and if we learn this precious lesson aright, we will not be careless, or fall asleep, as did the ten virgins. Show me the boy or girl who is looking for the Lord to come, and I will show you a bright, happy face; hands that serve diligently, and feet that run quickly in the path of obedience. It cannot be otherwise, for this bright hope gives constant joy of heart, and each day’s waiting only gives another opportunity for happy service in a world that is not our home, but is yet a place where the Lord does need workers, and where every little service, if done for His glory, will be rewarded.

How many scriptures can my little readers find that tell of the coming of the Lord? R. M.

ML 02/04/1900

Will You Be There?

NOT long ago, a friend of mine was telling me of her little nephew, who was staying with her—a little boy between three and four years old.

One day he said to his cousin Emily, “Sing me ‘Will you be there and I’?” After she had finished, he said, “Won’t it be nice for us three to be there?” (including a young man, who was sitting in the room, his cousin, and himself).

“I know little Arthur will be there,” replied his cousin.

He turned to her and said, “Will you be there, Emily?”

She said, “Yes, dear, because I’m sheltered beneath the blood of Christ.” He then turned to the young man and asked, “Mr. —, will you be there?” but he received no answer.

Dear children, if you were asked the question, “Will you be there?” could you say “yes” like this little boy and his cousin, or would you rather not give an answer at all?

ML 02/04/1900

"O Lucy, Don't Ring!"

“PRAYING ALWAYS.” (EPH. 6:18.)

A LITTLE girl was sitting in the dining-room one morning. I won’t tell you her name because many of you know her, so we will call her Jessie. It was luncheon time and the maid came in to ring the bell. Jessie had just heard her father’s voice upstairs, and when Lucy took the bell. Jessie said, “O Lucy, don’t ring, Papa is praying!” “What nonsense Jessie, people don’t pray at this hour of the day,” said Lucy. “Lucy you don’t love the Lord,” replied Jessie.

I wonder if the boys and girls who read this, understand what Jessie meant, that if we really love a person, we are always ready to talk to him, for praying is talking to the Lord, you know. Loving children would feel dreadfully if their mother were with them, and they could only speak to her twice a day. Boys and girls like to tell their parents when pleasant things happen to them, or when they want anything; and when they get into any trouble, then the first thing is to run to Mamma. Perhaps some of you are like Lucy and think there are certain times in the day for prayer; in the morning when you rise, and at night when you go to bed. Well, we should certainly pray at those times, but if we really loved the Lord Jesus we should be looking to Him often. I am afraid if you do not want to think about Him, except at certain times, you won’t want to see Him when He comes. And He may come some day when you are at your play.

Does it make you feel afraid to hear that He is coming soon? Jesus only wants to make you happier. Why be afraid of Him? He wants to save and to bless you and has asked you to trust to Him for salvation. Sin makes us afraid, but “His blood cleanseth us from all sin.”

E. H.

ML 02/04/1900

A Saviour for You.

ANOTHER young man with myself had been working at a Yacht anchored off the coast of the Isle of Arran. When we started in our small boat for Lamlash, a distance of about seven miles, the waves were running high, but we could manage to get along till we entered Lamlash Lough. We were within sight of our destination, when a fierce gale of wind opposed our progress. The waves rose high, and, dashing against our little boat, every moment, threatened to swamp it.

We did what we could to keep the bow of our frail craft to the waves and pulled for our lives; our hands blistered and our backs feeling as if we would never get them straightened again. But all we could do was in vain. We noticed by landmarks which we knew, that we were drifting out to the open sea.

Thank God! We were both believers in Christ, and could encourage each other in the Lord. I could hear my companion behind me say, “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” Luke 12:32.

Well, the Lord did send us a saviour. We noticed a yacht leaving the smallest island, as if to go to Lamlash, but it changed its course and made straight for us. How easily it seemed to ride over the stormy billows, and soon it came so close, we could see the man in it, and could hear him shout, “Throw me a rope.” As he sailed round us, we did so, fastening it securely in the bow of our boat. And then with thankful hearts, put on our coats and sat down in the stern. Watching with grateful hearts how quickly and triumphantly we glided over the rough waters, by the power of the one who had taken us in hand, and soon we reached our desired haven. You may be sure we thanked our deliverer, and my friend remarked, “How much we have to thank the Lord for, tonight!”

Dear children, we are all on life’s journey, and because of sin man is ruined and brought under Satan’s power, but, “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16). That blessed One on the Cross “hath once suffered for sins the just for the unjust to bring us to God;” otherwise we could not have been saved.

Down from the glory He came and finished the work. God has raised Him from the dead, proving that the work is accepted by Him.

“Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.” (Rom. 4:25.) That is the gospel. Do you believe it?

Do you believe Christ suffered for your sins? Well, the moment you do, God has justified you. (Acts 13:38, 39.)

Your believing is just like throwing the rope; we did it, and then rested. So with the sinner, He stops trying to do, or to feel, and rests simply on Christ and what He has done. And now, having done so, we are carried along by His power. How we enjoy it, as we realize how strong our Saviour is, and how secure we are in His hand. (John 10:28.)

The storms may roar, wind and waves, Satan and circumstances may all seem against us, but God is for us, He is greater than all, (Rom. 8:31.) and we are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. (1 Peter 1:5.)

Is there nothing now, for us to do? Yes, there is, but not for salvation, we have that. We begin with thanking our kind deliverer, and He says to us, “As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you.” (John 20: 21.) Now we have One to live for, who died for us.

“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if One died for all, then were all dead; and that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto Him which died for them, and rose again.” 2 Cor. 5:14-15. A. F.

ML 02/11/1900

Katie's Love.

In distant lands across the sea,

Ten thousands miles or more,

A mother with her children three,

Resided near the shore.

One day she sent them to the sands

To gather bits of wood,

She loved to see their little hands

At work at something good.

Like little lambkins from the fold,

They ran along the sea:—

Now, Katie, she was nine years old,

Her sisters—five and three.

Along the beach and near the bay,

They wander’d up and down,

And to the distant woods away,

Until the sun went down.

The children with the place were charm’d

And onward still they sped,

Till Katie soon became alarm’d

To see the darkness spread.

The wind was blowing cold and shrill,

The children were in tears,

The night was getting darker still,

And great were Katie’s fears.

At last she saw a little nook

Within a rocky cave,

And there the little ones she took,

Determined them to save.

She gathered sea-weed from the beach,

Which sun and wind had dried,

And all the moss within her reach

Around the cavern side.

And in a corner made a bed,

To shield them from the storm,

And then her little tippet spread,

To keep them snug and warm.

The ocean dashed upon the bay,

The wind blew loud and wild,

But neither of them turned away

The noble-hearted child.

And there she sat till morning light,

And till the storm was past.

The mother searched throughout the night,

And found them here at last.

She found the little ones asleep,

Safe in their sea-weed bed,

And Katie sitting near the heap—

But Katie: she was dead!

Her loving care for them was such

No storm or wind could stem,

For Katie loved her sisters much,

And lost her life for them.

But Jesus’ love was more than this,

And at a greater cost,

He left His own bright home of bliss

And died to save the lost.

G. C.

ML 02/11/1900

The Best Time to Come to Jesus.

An old grey-headed man who was made to know when he was a boy that his sins were forgiven, said in his old age, “I think if there has been one thing more than another that I have blessed and thanked God for as life has gone on, it is that He gave me to know my Saviour and to have my sins forgiven when I was a little child.”

This man had, when a little boy, been greatly troubled about his sins, and it was only after many efforts and sore struggles that he was led to see that Jesus was a kind and loving Saviour, and that God, who gave Jesus to save him from perishing, was now his Father, and that he was God’s child. When he saw this, the burden of sin was lifted from his heart, never to come back again. Many years passed over his head, and those years were spent in service to the One he loved—the One who had saved him.

Do you think, dear children, that this man regretted, as the end of his life drew near, that so much of it had been given to Jesus? He did not; if you have read carefully what he thanked God for, you will see that he was very, very glad that he had lived his life for Jesus. He did not say, I am sorry that I did not take a little longer time for pleasure before turning to Jesus; and he did not say, it has made a weary road for me to travel, following Jesus. Oh! no, with his whole heart he thanked God that he had been brought to Jesus when he was a little child.

And now let me say to you, dear little readers, the life that is not lived for Jesus, is not worth living. I pray God that if you have not already given Him your heart, you may give it to Him now. Satan would have you wait until you are grown; then when you are grown up, he will whisper, wait a little longer—you can have a good time for a while, then it will be time enough. Do not listen to him for he is a liar.

The happiest time to come, and the best is God’s time, and that is Now! “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” R.

ML 02/11/1900

Nobody Looking

MRS. Clarke had a hard struggle to bring up her little family, but she did not mind how hard she worked, so that she could get food and clothing for them. Her eldest boy, Herbert, was a sharp, intelligent little fellow, and his mother had great hopes of him that he would grow up a good boy; for she taught him to be honest and truthful, and as Mrs. Clarke was a Christian, she wanted to see her children Christians too; that is, she wanted them to know Jesus as their Saviour.

When Herbert was old enough he went away to learn a trade. His master was very fond of him, and as Herbert used to tell him that he loved Jesus, because He had forgiven him all his sins, his master was not afraid to trust him to be in his office, and do many little things that he would not have trusted to an unconverted boy.

But one day Mr. Mills noticed that Herbert was very downcast, and fearing Satan may have tempted the boy to do wrong, he called him into his study and asked him what was the matter.

Herbert said there was nothing; but his face showed all was not right.

However, a little time after this, poor Herbert came to his master, and with tears in his eyes told him how he had taken a penny out of his till, and afterwards told a lie to hid it.

Mr. Mills could not help crying too, as the sorrowing boy confessed his sin. He asked him what led him to take it. Poor Herbert said, “Satan seemed to say, ‘Nobody’s looking, take a penny, you will be able to buy some nice apples at the shop round the corner’; and I looked every way, and saw nobody looking, and took it.”

“You forgot to look one way,” said Mr. Mills, “for some One was looking at you all the while, and saw you do it.”

“Who was that?” asked he.

“Have you forgotten the little text which says, ‘Thou God seest me’?”

“Oh yes! I forgot God was looking,” said the sorrow-stricken boy, “or I should not have taken it.”

Satan makes many a little boy and girl do wrong, because he says, Nobody’s looking; but if they would look up, perhaps they would remember that little word,

“Thou God seest me.”

My Little Friend.

A christian sailor, when asked why he remained so calm in a fearful storm, said, “Though I sink, I shall only drop into the hollow of my Father’s hand; for He holds all these waters there.”

Someone asked a black boy; “Who are the meek?” He answered, “Those who give soft answers to rough questions.”

ML 02/11/1900

Fall of the Rossberg.

MANY years ago, among the Alps in Switzerland, stood a towering peak, called the “Rossberg.” At the foot of one side, which was nearly perpendicular, there nestled a little village. Just below this, was one of those blue mountain lakes, so common in Switzerland. Some of the people thought part of the mountain might fall someday, so an officer was sent to examine and report on it. He stopped at the hotel, and every day for a week, with pick and shovel and hammer, he dug and climbed and examined. At last he had the people all called together, when he said to them, “I am an officer sent here by the government to examine this mountain. I find that the top of it is composed of separate boulders, resting on a foundation of gravel. One of these days it will fall! And the wisest thing you can do is to move away. Good by!”

Of course the people were much alarmed at the message, and hardly dared to stay.

Some moved away to another village.

But it did not fall immediately, and soon people laughed at their fears, for the mountain still stood, as it had for many years. Days, weeks, months and years rolled away, and still it stood. Old men and women died and were buried. Strange children played in the streets, and all went on as usual. The officer and his message were nearly forgotten.

But one night, nineteen years after the warning, with an awful roar, the mountain fell, which buried the village and half choked up the little lake. Very few escaped.

Now, my young friend, has this no warning voice for you?

You are living in a scene which has been solemnly threatened with the judgments of God. “The heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be burned up.” 2 Pet. 3:7 and 10.

God has set the very day! “He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness, by that Man whom He hath ordained,” Acts 17:31.

All of a sudden, like a thief, it will be here!

There is one way of escape, and only one. Jesus died on a cross of shame for you, and you must flee to Him by faith.

“He bore God’s judgment poor sinner’s to save.”

I’ve forgotten where I read the story of the “Rossberg.” But I cannot forget the still more solemn warnings, of still more terrible judgments in God’s Word. Mighty men will soon be calling for mountains and rocks to fall on them, to hide them from the wrath of God. W. D. C.

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is long suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Pet. 3:9.

ML 02/18/1900

Animals of the Bible.

THE HORSE.

LET us see, dear children, what we can find in God’s word about the horse. In Job. 39:19-25 we find a very remarkable description of this animal. I trust you will read it all. I will quote part of it. “The glory of his nostrils is terrible. He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength: he goeth on to meet the armed men. He mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted; neither turneth he back from the sword.” v. 20-22. From this you see that the horse of the Bible, was an animal used in war—indeed it is a symbol of war, as the domestic ass is of peace. We find that the horse formed no part of the possessions of God’s people. They went out of Egypt with their cattle; the Egyptians followed with horses and chariots, till the Red Sea swallowed them up. The true Israelite could say: “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.” Ps. 20:7. In Dent. 17 we find this direction for their king after they had come into the promised land, “But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses.” But King Solomon disregarded the word of the Lord, “And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. . . . And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt.” 1 Kings 10:26, 28. No doubt Solomon made himself great in the eyes of the nations about him by this means, but alas! in the next chapter, we see his downfall, His heart was not perfect with the Lord his God. See, dear children, what a solemn thing it is to disobey God, and where it may end.

In Ps. 34 we are told not to be like the horse or the mule, which must be held in with bit and bridle. “We put bits in the horses’ mouths that they may obey us.” (Jas. 3:3) God says to His people, “I will guide thee with Mine eye.” But if we will not obey, God may have to check us with bit and bridle. That is something we cannot resist which checks us in our wilful ways. It may be sickness, loss of property, or anything to show us we are not walking in His ways, and being guided by His eye.

One thing more. We have seen our blessed Lord Jesus down here, meek and lowly, riding upon an ass. Now turn to Rev. 19, and look with the beloved John into the open heavens. You see One riding on a white horse, followed by the armies of heaven. Can it be “that same Jesus”? Yes, look at His name by which He is called “The Word of God.”

And again, verse 16, “King of kings, and Lord of Lords.” None else can claim that title. When we saw Him riding on the ass, He was about to be judged at man’s judgment-seat—to be condemned, and then to bear the awful judgment of God, for man’s sin. When we see Him on the horse, He, Himself is the judge. (v. 11) “He Both judge and make war.”

Ah! dear ones, now is the time to own Him as your Lord, and not wait for Him to come “Lord of Lords.” Those who own Him now, will be with Him then. “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?” 1 Cor. 6:2.

Take your place with the meek and lowly, despised and rejected Jesus who once rode an ass, and then you will not fear the One with eyes of flame, riding the white horse.

E. G. B.

ML 02/18/1900

Inside or Outside?

“WE were looking in your shop one day, sir,” said a little girl, who, with her brother, was talking to me, “but we did not see you.”

“And I wonder,” I said, “when I get to heaven, if you will be looking in to see if I’m there?”

“No, no, we shall be inside, then,” said the little girl with a meaning look, which seemed to say she had no doubt about the matter. And why should there be any doubt, even in a little child’s heart, when God says in words which a tiny boy or girl can understand, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” And many little ones of my acquaintance, do believe God’s Word, and are happy in doing so, and they are quite sure that they will be inside when the door is shut, for God says that everyone who believes in Christ shall not perish. If my little readers are not quite sure that they will be inside, let them read the sixteenth verse of the third chapter of John. Remember! “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

MY LITTLE FRIEND.

ML 02/18/1900

"I Am Ready! Are You?"

In a pretty country village, not far from the sea, lived little Agnes, whose story I wish to tell you. One Sunday afternoon, amongst the new faces at our Sunday school were Agnes and her sister Emily, and that is how we came to know them. Agnes was seven years old, Emily three. Their sister Maggie, aged fourteen, took care of them and a baby sister, whom their mother had left an infant when she was taken very ill and died.

Children at Sunday school are often not very attentive, and teaching them is a work of patience. Well, Agnes was about the same as the rest in this respect, but as she sat near her teacher, perhaps she heard better than most in the class.

A few weeks passed away, when one Tuesday a sad accident happened. Maggie had gone out on an errand, and left the three little ones at home. Agnes stood on the fender to reach something off the chimney-piece, when her clothes caught alight from the fire.

The door was standing open, and as the wind blew in, it quickly fanned it into a flame. Agnes was terrified and ran out of the house, across the road to the nearest cottage, screaming for help. But before help could come it was too late. The little frock, pinafore and petticoat were so burnt they dropped off the poor little scarred body.

The neighbors put Agnes to bed as soon as they could, and sent for a doctor; but she had some hours of great pain before the remedies used began to tell on her, and then she fell into a restless sleep.

The next day Agnes lay for a long while in a kind of stupor and we could not speak to her, but while in this state it seemed as if God spoke to her; for, after a time, from her poor, dry lips came the words of the little hymn she had so often sung in school :—

“There is a happy land

Far, far away.”

Then she became occupied with the One who makes heaven a happy place. She, like Stephen, saw Jesus; and her often repeated words were, though she had certainly never said such things before, “Heavenly Jesus! O, Jesus! You are my Jesus! Are you ready! I am.” Then she used the words, “Christ in glory,” and so the day passed away. Thursday came and it was evident that Agnes would not get better, but was passing away. I went to look at her again. She lay as before and had not spoken for some time, but while I was there her lips parted and faintly the words came, “I am ready; are you?” A few minutes more and she had gone to be with Jesus.

Oh! that all who read these lines were able to use the words of Agnes, and say to others, “I am ready, are you?”

ML 02/18/1900

Forty Years Seeking Peace.

A respectable young man, —a Hindu—stood for a few moments listening to a preacher in the city of Calcutta. The preacher had seen but little fruit of his labors, but the following case of blessing came to light many years afterwards.

That young man heard the question of sin discussed, and he left with the sense of sin on his conscience which he could not shake off. He heard not or heeded not, God’s way of salvation.

He grew up to manhood, and was prosperous in business, and for a time his convictions seemed to sleep; but adversity came, and then again the sense of sin bore heavily on his conscience.

He gave up everything to seek to bring relief to his conscience by a religious life, and for several years he wandered over many parts of India, seeking peace at various shrines; but without finding rest or peace.

At length he joined a society composed of persons dissatisfied with Hinduism, but who did not receive the religion of Jesus Christ—a kind of Unitarianism. Their maxim was; “Do what is just and right, and all will be well.” But while this sounded right, it brought him no peace; for, to use his own words, “the remembrance of past sins kept rushing into my mind; something seemed to say, ‘Without an atonement for past sins you perish.’”

This new society knew of no atonement, while Hinduism did, of some sort, so he returned to his old religion, and again wandered from holy spot to holy spot, seeking peace. At Benares, with its two thousand shrines, he fairly gave way to despair, exclaiming, “What more can I do than I have done? yet there is no peace!

He returned to Calcutta, and visited a bed-ridden nephew. His nephew had a Bible, portions of which he read to his uncle, who was induced to go to the preaching of the missionary. There he heard the way of salvation, and said to the preacher, “Glory to God! this is what I have been longing to hear for forty years.”

He obtained a Bengali Bible and was not seen again for two months. He was studying God’s word, and on his return was found to have gathered much truth from the word itself, and could quote passage after passage as to what he had learned.

He was asked if he was now ready to confess Christ, and be baptized. “I know,” he said, “what it will involve. I am now respected by a large circle of friends; once baptized, I shall be abhorred and denounced by all—yea, my very children will forsake me. Give me two days to reflect and pray.”

He went away but could not sleep. On the third morning, in his agony, he cried to God to show him what he ought to do. On opening his Bible his eyes fell upon— “Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:33.) It was enough; that day he confessed Christ.

Then his trials came. Friends, servants, children, forsook him; curses were poured upon him, and the finger of scorn pointed at him; but it shook him not. He returned blessing for cursing. He now enjoyed that peace that none could deprive him of. “O Sahib,” said he, “the love of Jesus has ravished my heart.”

“My LITTLE FRIEND.”

ML 02/25/1900

Really for Nothing.

NOT long ago a boy named Alfred was coming home from school, when he saw a man carrying a sack of papers. As he passed each house, he rolled up a paper and threw it into the yard. Alfred saw a paper fly on to his own porch, so as he went into the house he picked it up.

“Here’s an advertisement a man threw on our porch just now, Mamma,” he said, coming in where his mother was sewing. “Open it and read it to me,” she said. “I haven’t time. It may be something we want to know.”

So Alfred unfolded the paper, and this was the first thing he saw:

ANY BOY WHO COMES TO OUR BOYS’ CLOTHING DEPARTMENT ON SATURDAY MORNING, WILL BE GIVEN A KODAK, FREE.

He read this to his mother, and she said, “Why, if that’s so, you must go down. Read the rest, and see what it says.”

But though he read all there was on the paper, he found no more about the kodaks. It told of men’s and boys’ suits and overcoats on sale, cheap, and then there was the name of the store, and that was all.

“There isn’t another word but what is at the top of the paper,” he said. “Why do you want me to go, Mamma?”

“Because it says they are free. That store wouldn’t send out such a notice if it wasn’t so,” said the mother. “You go down in the morning, and you will have as good a chance as anyone.”

“Oh, they will want me to buy some clothes, a $5 overcoat, or something,” Alfred said. “Or else they will say there are none left, or it will be for just some boys they know, or who work for them.”

“There is nothing about buying clothing, or that they are to have a few, and it says they are for any boy. That means you, so you go.”

So on Saturday morning Alfred made his way into the store and found the boys’ clothing department. He kept thinking it would be a mistake, and he would be sent out of the store, until he got up to a big table, and there was a big pile of kodaks—all little ones—but they were real; he could see that. “Can those be really for nothing?” he thought. “They can’t be for every boy, they’re too good.”

Just then a man came up to him, and taking one of the kodaks off the table, handed it to Alfred with a smile. “That’s for you,” he said, as the boy hardly liked to hold out his hand for it, and as he said “Thank you” he saw a number of boys coming in. Everyone got a kodak, and Alfred went out again with quite a crowd of them. He told his mother when he went home with it, how glad he was that he had gone.

There is another notice I want to tell you about, one that has been sent to everybody in every place, not just to the boys of one city, like the other one. Do you know what it is? I mean the Bible—God’s notice.

Now, perhaps you are like Alfred was before he unfolded the paper—you have it, but you need to be told to “open and read it.” So if you open it at Acts 16:31, you will find how to get

SALVATION, FREE AND FOR YOU: “BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST AND THOU SHALT BE SAVED.”

There is something everybody wants—to know how to be saved from hell, and to be of sure of going to heaven. How are you to know it? The message says, believe. Is that all? Not pay for it? No. It says “freely.” Revelation 22.17.

Not work for it? No. “Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephes. 2:9.

Perhaps you think, like Alfred, that it is only for some few people. No. It is “whosoever will.” Rev. 22:17. That means anybody that wants it.

You see, then, it is a gift, like the kodaks were; and see what a valuable gift it is: “The gift of God is eternal life.” Romans 6:23. Not something that will last a little while, or as long as you take care of it, but something that will last when even the world you live in will be all burned up! Think of it!

If you want to know who it is that sends the message, you will read: “There is no God else beside Me; a just God and a Saviour.” Isaiah 45:21. Surely we can say of Him, as Alfred’s mother said of the store, that “He wouldn’t send out such a message if it wasn’t so.”

Maybe someone says: “Well, if all you have to do is to believe, I want to know just what it means to ‘believe.’ “It means to know that all He says is true; that you cannot go to heaven, or help yourself to go to heaven, by anything that you can do, because you do wrong things, and you have a nature that likes to do wrong things, and God is holy and perfect. But He loves you and sent His Son to die for you, and His blood “cleanseth from all sin.” John 1:7. You need not wait till Saturday morning, like Alfred did, for “now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Cor. 6.2. Go at once, wherever you are, whoever you are, and you will find that “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6 :37.

E G.

ML 02/25/1900

Two Mothers.

As we look at the picture of two mothers, we cannot help but think of the love and care the mothers have for their children. It speaks to us of their love and delight in having their children along with them. When children grow up, they often do not think of how much their mothers have done for them, and often they do not like to do what their mothers tell them to do. So God has given us a verse in the Bible about it, which is:

“Hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother.” Prov. 1:8.

But let me tell you of the One who loves you a great deal more than even your mother does. Can some of you tell me who that is? I know many of you can answer it right away. It is the Lord Jesus. Yes, dear children, He is the One, and the way that He has shown His love is by dying for you on the cross, bearing the judgment of God for sin. And now He wants you to come to Him. Have you come to Him? Do you trust Him and seek to obey Him, seeing He loves you so much?

ML 02/25/1900

Echoes from the Sunday School.

A FOLDED slip of paper had been handed to each member of the class, containing these questions, “What do you think of Jesus?” “What is He to you?” In answer to the second question, one little boy wrote, “He is my one Saviour.” Now this dear little boy could not spell very well, and thought o-n-e spelt own. He meant to say, “He is my own Saviour.” But how true it was either way. He is our one Saviour, “For there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12.

May each dear child who reads this be able to say from the heart, “He is my own Saviour.” E. G. B.

ML 02/25/1900

Answers to Questions of Jan. 7th, 1900.

1.“Theophilus.” Luke 1:3.

2.“Herod.” 3:19.

3.“Young man, I say unto,” etc. 7:14.

4.“Simeon.” 2:25.

5. “If Thou be Christ, save,” etc. 23:39.

6.“Ninevites.” 11:30.

7.“Shepherds.” 2:8.

8.“Arimathea.” 28:51.

9.“Remember Lot’s wife,” 17:32.

10.“Exact no more than that,” etc. 3:13.

11.“Foxes have holes and,” etc. 9:58.

12.“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,”etc. 13:34.

13.“Rejoice with me; for I,” etc. 15:6.

14.“Glory to God in the,” etc. 2:14.

15.“If Thou be the Son of God,’ etc. 4:9

16.“Vail of the temple.” 23:45.

17.“Eighteen years.” 13:11.

18.“Nain.” 7:11.

The first letter of each answer spells, “Thy sins are forgiven.” Luke 7:48.

Without the aid of a concordance, or help from others, give chapter and verse from Matthew’s gospel, of each of the scriptures quoted below; also the one composed of the words in the capital letters.

1. “THE rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save Him.”

2. “And, lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved SON, in whom I am well pleased.”

3.“And when He was accused OF the chief priests and elders, He answered nothing.”

4.“And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of MAN shall be betrayed into the hands of men.”

5.“Whence then HATH this man all these things?”

6.“But go ye and learn what that meaneth. I will have mercy, and NOT sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous; but sinners to repentance.”

7.“WHERE is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him.”

8.“For the Son of Man is come TO save that which was lost.”

9.“He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the, place where the Lord LAY.”

10.“And set up over HIS head, His accusation written, This is Jesus the King of the Jews.”

11. “And they spit upon Him, and took the reed, and smote Him on the HEAD.”

ML 03/04/1900

Look and Live.

I WONDER how many of you have read about the serpent of brass which Moses made in the wilderness. You will find an account of it in Numbers 21. The children of Israel had spoken against God, and against Moses, and the Lord sent fiery serpents among them; and these serpents bit the people, and many died. This was the Lord’s judgment upon them because of their sin. Then the people confessed their sin, and asked Moses to pray for them. And when Moses prayed for them, the Lord said to him: “Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.”

This was the Lord’s remedy for these poor bitten people, who were dying all over the camp. There was just one thing they had to do, in order to be healed and live, and that was to LOOK AT THE BRAZEN SERPENT. There was the serpent of brass raised high on a pole, so that all could see it, and they just looked at that serpent, and then they were healed. Nothing else could save them. No doctors could cure the bite of those fiery serpents. The Lord only could heal them. And He did so, when they looked at the serpent on the pole.

Now do you remember what the Lord Jesus says about this? You will find it in John 3:14, 15. He says:

“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Dear young reader, just as those people were bitten by the fiery serpents, so have we all been bitten by sin. The poison of sin has ruined us, and exposed us to a far worse death than that in the wilderness. We cannot cure ourselves.

God only can do this. And this He does through Christ; but it is Christ lifted up on the cross. This is God’s remedy for sin, and there is no other. Christ dying on the cross has made atonement for sin, and because of this God saves every poor sinner who believes.

Do you realize that sin has ruined you, and that you cannot save yourself? Ah! then here is God’s unfailing remedy for you. Christ has been lifted up on the cross for you; He has died for you; His precious blood has been shed to cleanse you.

Now what have you to do to be saved from the bite of sin? Just what the bitten Israelites did. They looked at the brazen serpent on the pole; and you have to look to Christ lifted up on the cross. The Israelites looked, and lived. Believe on the lifted up and crucified Saviour, and you shall live. He has been “lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” Oh! could you ask more? God has not spared His own Son. He has given Him up to die on the cross. Can you refuse to look to Him, and trust in Him?

We can hardly doubt that all those bitten Israelites looked at the serpent of brass, in order to be healed, unless some were so far stupefied by the poison that they heeded not the call to look. Oh! can it be that any of you have been so far stupefied by sin, that you do not hear the call of God to look to Jesus? Do you not care? Are you about to pass into eternity, ruined by sin, to wake up in the lake of fire, “the fire that never shall be quenched”? If you are indifferent to Christ, this is your terrible condition. Oh! wake up, and look to Jesus now.

“There is life in a look at the crucified One,

“There is life at this moment for thee,

“Then look, sinner, look unto Him, and be saved,

“Unto Him who was nailed to the tree.

“Look, look, look, and live.”

H. R.

ML 03/04/1900

The Bermudas.

WOULD you, my little readers, like to hear about some islands away out in the Atlantic Ocean? There is a very interesting group, called “The Bermudas,” which lie 600 miles directly east of Charleston, S. C., and about 700 miles southeast of New York City, and I want to tell you a little about them.

These islands are coral reefs, built by the little coral insect, upon some mountains under the sea, no doubt, many centuries ago, and have risen up, until, on the larger islands there are hills as much as 265 feet high. There are hundreds of islands in the group, and there are many rocks and reefs surrounding them which lie under the water and make it very dangerous for ships to go near them, except through a winding channel of approach, known only to skilled seamen, who are called pilots, and who go out for many miles—sometimes a hundred or more—to meet in-coming ships and conduct them safely into the harbor.

Of these hundreds of islands, many are very small. There are a few of the principal ones that are separated only by narrow channels of water, which are bridged across, or traveled over by cause-ways and ferries. These larger islands, thus connected, lie something in the shape of a fish-hook, but they curve a little all the way, instead of being straight, as part of the fish-hook is. Following the curve about, the length of the islands is eighteen or nineteen miles; and they vary in width, the body of the islands averaging something over a mile across; the hooked part at the end being considerably narrower. They form a series of hills and vales and are covered with beautiful, semi-tropical verdure.

For two centuries these islands have been in the hands of Great Britain, and strong fortresses are built upon them to hinder any other nation, in time of war, from getting possession. More than a hundred miles of fine roads have been cut out of the coral rocks, and these beautiful roads wind up and down over the hill tops, and in and out through the pretty vales.

ML 03/04/1900

One More Chance.

THE Christian parents of a little girl, spoke one evening to her, for a long time, of the Lord Jesus. They told her of His love in dying for sinners, and His speedy return to take all who believe on Him to be with Him forever. They said, too, that then the door of mercy would be shut; and they earnestly entreated their little daughter to come to the Lord Jesus ere it was too late, that she might be ready to meet Him at whatever hour He might come.

After having gone to bed and slept some time, she awoke, and wondered at the silence of the house. She listened, hoping to hear some familiar voice, but no sound fell upon her ear save the solemn ticking of a great clock on the stairs. She thought of the conversation of the evening before, and of her parents’ entreaties and warnings.

“Could it be that the Lord had come? Had her father and mother gone to be with Him, and left her behind?”

The thought filled her with fear, and, running to the door of her mother’s room, she called gently:

“Mother, dear!”

There was no answer. Only the clock kept on counting out the seconds as they sped. Again she called, now more loudly:

“Mother, dear!”

Again no answer. She felt almost sure now that she was left behind for judgment, and that her last chance of salvation had passed away.

Overcome with terror, she shook the handle of the door.

“Who is there?” asked a voice from within.

“Oh, it is I, and I am so glad you are there,” was the answer.

She entered the room, and told her mother of her terrible fears. She needed no entreaty now to bring her to the feet of Jesus, so thankful was she that she had one more chance of being made fit for His presence.

The Lord has not come yet, but He is soon coming. The last gospel message will be given, the last invitation to poor sinners will go forth. How terrible for those who refuse it!

Dear children, you have one more chance. Accept God’s message of love to you now, so that you may join those who can say, “Even so, come Lord Jesus,” in answer to His farewell promise, “Surely I come quickly.”—Selected.

ML 03/04/1900

The "Refuge." Are You in It?

“A man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place; as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.” Isa. 32:2.

I REMEMBER, one fine summer day, seeing a young woman sitting on a ridge of rock by the seaside reading a book.

The sun was shining brightly, and the cool sea breeze made it so pleasant as she sat there absorbed in her book.

The tide was rising, and we saw what she did not; that the sea was rushing in between her and the shore, growing deeper every minute. We knew that it would soon be too deep to ford, so we shouted to her. She looked round, and in a moment her pleasure was gone, and distress took its place. Do you blame us for telling her of her danger? She thanked us afterwards when we showed her the way across the deepening waters.

Are you enjoying yourselves, heedless that you are still, if unsaved, under the judgment of God? And nearer and nearer it is ever coming to you. Is it not wisdom to look the truth right in the face? Surely it is, for we know not what a day may bring forth. A man worked with me for some time. I asked him to a gospel meeting, but he did not care to come—he had no interest in these things. At times I spoke a few earnest words to him. He took sick one day, and three days after he was dead. I felt condemned that I had not been more earnest about his soul, but the opportunity was gone forever.

O, children! Now is God’s accepted time; now is the day of salvation.

The girl at the seaside took our warning and was saved from her danger. Will you take warning too?

Passing along the street in Edinburgh one Lord’s day morning, we noticed dense volumes of smoke coming through a roof. Up at the windows we could see some young men sitting in the sunshine, enjoying themselves. As the smoke grew more dense, we saw there was no time to lose. The doorbell was violently rung and the shout of “fire, fire,” soon wakened the inmates from their apathy. They were then in a hurry, and the half-dressed people came rushing out. Their pleasure was spoiled, but safety was before pleasure. We did it for their good. It should not need an apology for such an act.

Heartless wretches we would be, if we could see our fellows perish and not try to save them.

Do you want to be blind to your danger? God says, “He that believeth not, shall be damned.” Mark 16:16. “I see the love of God in that verse,” said a preacher, “for if God did not want us to be saved, He would not have said it.” It is to arouse you, so that you may flee to the refuge provided.

And who is the Man that is the refuge? It is the Lord Jesus Christ.

“There is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a ransom for all.” 1 Tim. 2:5, 6.

Many have risked their lives, and lost them for others, but He gave Himself, knowing the depths of unutterable suffering to be endured. Will you turn away from such love? He wants you for Himself. What is your answer?

What a Saviour He is. “Blessed are all they that put their trust (take refuge) in Him.” Ps. 2:12. The Lord is round about His people from henceforth even forever. Ps. 125:2. Are you one of them?

“Oh! would ye know my Saviour,

“Ye who are young and gay,

“Yet sometimes feel that earth’s delights

“Must fade and pass away?

“Then early list the voice of love

“Which tells of joys in heaven “When God can say, in righteousness,

“Your sins are all forgiven.”

How will you do without Him? How meet the judgment of God?

ML 03/11/1900

The Bermudas.

You would no doubt think it very nice if you could be here for a time to run about on these hard, white roads, where you would find at every turn, almost, something new to interest you; or to climb up the green hills and look down upon the pretty scene lying all about you. You would see the islands dotted all over with houses—some on the hilltops, some on the sides of the hills, some on the top of rocks that go straight up and down for many feet, some in the pretty dales—scattered here and there in romantic spots and cozy nooks, and such quaint little houses, they are! If you could be set down on this far away sea-girt isle, perhaps your first thought would be, oh, the houses are all covered with snow! But no! take time to think. If you go inside the houses there are no fires to warm you, for it never gets cold enough to make fires necessary—not even in mid-winter. The great Gulf Stream in its northward course, half circles these islands, and the cold, northern blasts are tempered by its waters, and by the time they have reached sunny Bermuda they have lost all their frost and most of their, coldness; so it cannot be snow that makes the houses so white. No, it is because they are built of the coral rock, and then cemented over with a hard, white cement to keep them from crumbling with the weather, that they look white. Sometimes the cement used on the walls is a light brown, but the roof is always white; and it slopes four ways, instead of two like the roofs on most of the houses that you have seen.

But we were taking a look from the hill-top! We can see not only the picturesque houses, the winding roads, the beautiful foliage, and woods and hills and vales, but, turning about, we can see the great ocean that stretches far, far away, until it reaches the horizon, and sea and sky seem to mingle.

But we must not linger too long on the hill-top. What about the people who live on these favored islands? I say favored because they are not only beautiful, but they are a very healthy place in which to live, and some of the people on them live to a very old age. Not only are they sheltered from the cold blasts of winter, but they are preserved also from the intense heat of summer, by the cool breezes from the sea.

The number of inhabitants on the island is 15,000; about two-thirds of these are colored, and they are an intelligent, quiet and reliable class of people. All are made to attend school until they are thirteen years old, and in this way all have some education. This is very good, and the good effects are seen on every hand, and what is still better, many of these dear people have learned to love the Lord Jesus and to serve and follow Him.

And this is the one thing of great importance, for no matter how fine the climate may be, or how beautiful the scenery, the blight of sin is found the wide world over. There is no spot so favored that “the trail of the serpent” may not be seen. In a better climate, people may live a little longer than in a place where it is more trying, but at last they die, and the little longer time they may have had here upon earth will avail them nothing in the unending eternity upon which they have entered, unless they have found Jesus as their Saviour, and have lived for Him.

Eternity, and not time, should be the great question that occupies every one of us. “For the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Someday, if the Lord will, I may tell you something of how the Lord has led, and is leading, some of these dear, colored people of Bermuda.

ML 03/11/1900

The Lost Ball.

MY DEAR LITTLE READERS, I have a true story to tell you of how the Lord Jesus answers the prayers of the lambs of His flock, who come to Him with their troubles, even though they be only about their playthings.

There was once a little girl, whom I knew very well, playing ball out in the sunshine on a nice, warm, bright day. She was throwing the ball up against a wall, and then before it would reach the ground, catching it in her fat, chubby little hands, as I expect you have often done.

Well, after she had been amusing herself thus for some time, the ball, after leaving her hand, instead of coming back again, disappeared suddenly.

It could not be found at all, high or low. A moment before it had been in Hannah’s hand, and now that it was nowhere to be found, puzzled her little brain.

Not long before this, Hannah had become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and she knew that He was the hearer and answerer of prayer, for He had often helped her to find things which she had lost.

So after she had looked for the ball in every place she could think of, it suddenly occurred to her that she had not asked the Lord Jesus to help her find it. “Why, how silly I am,” she thought, “to forget that; I must do it at once.”

So down she went on her knees in the yard, regardless of the dirt, or of her clean dress, asking the Lord to show her where her treasure was hidden.

Five minutes had not gone by when she was running in to Mamma with her precious ball clasped tightly in her hand, crying out, “O, Mamma! Mamma! just listen how the Lord Jesus helped me to find my ball. I was playing with it, and suddenly it got lost, and I looked and looked for it, and yet I couldn’t find it, and still I didn’t think of asking Jesus to help me find it, and then suddenly I remembered I hadn’t asked Him, so I knelt down and asked Him to show me where my ball was, and, Mamma,” she gasped, out of breath by this time with talking so fast, “I hadn’t got up from my knees, I hadn’t opened my eyes, before I thought, Why, I haven’t looked under those boards, you know, Mamma, by the carriage-house; so I went and looked, and oh, there was my ball!”

Hannah is a big girl now, but though it is a long time since that little incident happened to her, she still remembers it, and now whenever she loses anything, or is in trouble of any kind, she goes and tells the Lord Jesus and He always helps her, as He will you, dear little reader, if you tell Him your little troubles. No matter where you are; or what you are doing, if you just lift your heart to Him and ask Him to help you, He will do it. He is more ready to answer our prayers than we are to offer them up.

Dear little readers, may this simple story teach you to take all your troubles and trials, (no matter how small or insignificant to others,) to Jesus who is always ready and willing to aid you.—Selected.

ML 03/11/1900

Scene in a Bermuda Post Office.

It is ten days since the mail was last received, and the good ship Trinidad is due again. But the day is dark and stormy, and hour after hour passes, and still no signal to give word that the expected ship is in sight; night falls, and still she has not arrived, and those who are eagerly waiting for tidings from across the sea, must wait another day, while thinking of the ship that is to bring those tidings, as out in the deep, riding the storm and seeking to keep off the dangerous rocks that surround the island.

Morning dawns, and anxious eyes look forth to see what the day is likely to be; the sun is struggling out from between the clouds, and for a time at least, the rain is stayed. Soon people from all directions are hurrying along towards the docks, and a stranger may safely conclude that the boat is not far off. About eight o’clock she is seen slowly steaming up the harbor. Soon she is safely anchored, and it is not long until she is drawn up along the side of the wharf; then begins the busy scene of unloading, for before even the passengers can get off, the mail bags must be started towards their destination. Very soon a string of men are seen hurrying along, one after another, each with a great, heavy bag of mail on his shoulders, which they deposit in wagons nearby that are waiting to receive them. Watch the men! Still they come, until you would begin to think there is no end to the mail; and watch the wagons as bag after bag is thrown upon them, the pile rising up until they will hold no more; one wagon is full; and now another, and a third has to bear its portion, but there is not enough to fill it up so high. Ah! now we will soon have word from absent loved ones; but wait; all those bags must be emptied of their contents—letters, papers and parcels—before we can get the word we are longing for, and so hours yet must pass.

Five, six, seven hours have passed, and now, at last, the office window is raised and the contents of the mail bags are beginning to be handed forth. But, look! here is a line of people formed, old and young, colored and white, men, women and little children, all with eager, expectant faces. The line begins at the office window and stretches back, back to the office door, and out on the long, covered porch in front; as each one at the office window gets his mail and passes out of the line, the next one steps forward, and the whole line moves forward, pressing closer and closer to those in front as the window is neared; but as fast, or faster than the line wears away at one end, it fills up at the other with new-comers, lengthening, and still lengthening, until one would think the clerks in the office would grow very tired, hastening, as they do, to find what belongs to each waiting one. But take a look at the people as they stand in line; expectation is written on every face—joyous expectation on most of the faces; and as each one’s turn comes, and letter after letter, and paper after paper is handed out, how the eyes brighten, and how the happy receiver hastens away with his treasure! But some get only one letter, and some do not get any; then comes the disappointed look. All seem to have sixpence or more ready, for the far-away friends are not always as thoughtful as they should be, and put more in their letters than five cents will carry, and then the friend receiving has to pay double postage; so often the postman calls out “five-pence”—this would be tea cents with us—and the money is always ready, and usually laid down cheerfully, for the people seem so glad to get their letters they are willing to pay a good deal for them; sometimes, however, it seems very hard, and then you will see the face grow quite long. But we will not linger longer in the post-office.

Let me tell you what this scene has brought to my mind; that is, the happy contrast with this, that there will be for those who are eagerly and with loving hearts waiting for Jesus, when He comes.

There will be no forming in line then, and weary waiting for one and another and another to get in; no, all will go together, and in a moment, when all is ready, to meet the Lord in the air. And there will be no disappointment for any who are the Lord’s, for each one will receive a bright and happy welcome home. There will be nothing to pay for the wonderful treasures that are awaiting each one who enters that happy place, for God has made all these joys ready for his loved ones; and Jesus is taking care to fit His own dear ones for full enjoyment of that blessed scene when they shall enter upon it. Instead of disappointment on the part of any, there will be fullness of joy on the part of all.

Now, dear children, how many of you are in that happy company who are waiting for Jesus to come?

How many of you at night are found listening for the “shout?” How many of you through the day are thinking Jesus may come before the day is over?

You know Jesus says, “Behold, I come quickly.” He says, too,

“Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord, when He cometh, shall find watching.” Luke 12:37.

May you watch and wait more eagerly for His coming, than those in the Bermuda post-office watched and waited for their mail. R.

ML 03/18/1900

The Rainbow.

Going up Loch Lomond in Scotland, one morning, in a small steamer that plied there, we saw a pretty sight. The sun was shining brightly, but the wind was blowing in very strong, fitful gusts that laid our vessel over on its side, till one paddle was buried in the water, while the other was out of it. It was dangerous, and the engines had to stop till the vessel was righted again. The water was dashed against the boat and whirled high in the air, like ringlets; and the sun shining on them made every ring a small rainbow.

It was not the beauty of the scene that riveted me, nor the danger we were in. It was the Scripture I had been reading, Gen. 9:12-17, “I do set my bow in the cloud,” v. 13, “And the bow shall be in the cloud,” v. 14. The rainbow is the pledge that God gives of His everlasting covenant with the earth; but I thought that morning of the pledge to me, as being in Christ, of His sure and everlasting protection and blessing. A. F.

ML 03/18/1900

Jemmy in the Pit.

WHEN I was a child we had a favorite playground, where we used to carry on our games. A beautiful garden skirted the further end, and when tired, it was our custom to go and lounge on some large felled trees that lay there, as though they had been put there for our special use. Over these a plum-tree threw its spreading arms, and in plum-time drew many little eyes to the luscious gems that bedecked the boughs. In spring, too, the tall laburnum would charm our sight with its golden tresses hanging so gracefully down over the garden wall.

One evening in the summer, just as it was getting near our bed-time, we were going to have “just one more game” at “hide and seek,” and already Jemmy Sims had hidden away and given the call, announcing the seekers to be on the lookout. In another part of the ground was a large shed used for keeping carts and barrows, and a good deal of old lumber; and not far from the entrance a deep sewer had been opened and emptied of its black contents. A very large and ugly affair it looked, with its great, wide mouth looking so hungry, and ready to swallow anyone who came near it.

We were specially warned not to go near the place of danger, and I think we were a little bit afraid of doing so.

Jemmy not being found, after looking into every mysterious corner, and behind and in every box, we were about leaving when we heard a sudden scream and a heavy, thud-like fall. We soon found out that Jemmy, being of a bold and venturesome spirit, had eluded our search by quietly slipping out of the shed by the open pit. He had, however, nearly cleared the narrow strip, when his foot slipped, and in he fell, and a horrible pit it was to fall in.

Fortunately the place had been well-nigh emptied, or he must have been smothered. As it was, he was greatly frightened to find himself in such a dreadful place.

I well recollect my father running down to the shed on hearing the scream. What was to be done? It was no use letting the poor boy do his best to get out of the pit; he was thoroughly helpless, so my father got a ladder and gradually let it down, and then descended into the dark cavern, and was not long bringing Jemmy up in his strong arms. We were glad to see our playfellow safe again, and to find he was not much injured by his fall, but that after a good wash—for you never saw such a funny-looking object as he seemed in father’s arms—he never wanted to go near the pit again; and that reminds me of one who has been delivered by Jesus from the pit of sin. He came down on purpose to seek and save hidden ones in the wretched place of wickedness; and who, when they know that they have been washed in His precious blood, take care how they walk, so that they may not become defiled again.—Selected.

“To Him let little children come,

For He hath said they may;

His bosom then shall be their home,

Their sins He’ll wash away.”

ML 03/18/1900

Our Saviour's Care.

Did you ever think, dear children,

Of your tender Saviour’s care?

How He watches, guards and keeps you

From the danger everywhere?

He is with you in the morning—

At the dawning of the day;

With you while the hours are passing—

While you work and while you play.

Unseen dangers oft surround you—

Dangers great and dangers small,

But while His strong arms uphold you,

You can never, never fall.

Then, when day at last is fading,

And the twilight shadows fall,

He is with you in the evening

And will hear your faintest call.

Nestled warmly ‘neath the covers,

Little eyes all closed so tight,

Still His care, unceasing, hovers

Fondly o’er you through the night.

Yes, dear children, this kind Saviour

E’er will guard with loving eyes

Till He comes, now soon, to take you

To His home beyond the skies.

ML 03/18/1900

Is It Nothing to You?

A FEW days ago, a lady was busily engaged with her work about the room, singing quietly to herself, the hymn, “Is it nothing to you that a Saviour has died?” when her little boy, seven years old, who was amusing himself nearby, looked up and said, “It is something to us, isn’t it Mamma, that a Saviour has died?”

“Yes, dear,” answered his mother, “it is everything to us.”

It is, indeed, everything to those who know that He died for them and bore the punishment that they deserved and put away their sins on the cross, giving them all blessings in Him. He is now risen and seated at the right hand of God in glory, and is soon coming for them.

How about you, my dear little friend, can you say, with the little boy, “It is something to me that a Saviour has died,” or “Is it nothing to you?” I beg of you not to turn away from His wondrous love!

“Is it nothing to you that a Saviour has died?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Can you carelessly glance at the Lord crucified?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Can you gaze on the dying One sad and forlorn,

On the brow of the royal One crowned with thorn,

On the hands that are nail-marked and feet that are torn?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Have you thought of His sorrow, so sad and so sore?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

The stripes for the sins that He willingly bore?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Have you grieved in the shame that He stooped to endure,

Have you longed for the pardon He

died to secure,

And the mansion prepared for the blondwashed and pure?

Is this nothing to you, nothing to you?

Is it nothing to you that time fleeth so fast?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Is it nothing to you that a life-mile is past?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Is it nothing to you that eternity nears,

That nought lies before you but trembling and tears,

And the day of dread judgment when Jesus appears?

Is this nothing to you, nothing to you?

The Redeemer now calls, will you still turn away?

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

There is danger in doubting and death in delay,

Is it nothing to you, nothing to you?

Oh, then flee to the Saviour, respond to His call,

He will save from the sins that now chain and enthrall,

He will welcome you gladly and pardon you all,

Is this nothing to you, nothing to you?”

ML 03/25/1900

"Charlie, the Deaf and Dumb Boy."

There lived in the town of L., an orphan boy whose name was Charlie; he was both deaf and dumb. His aunt, with whom he lived, was very kind to him and gave him all the comfort she could, and everything her limited means would afford.

He was very happy and bright, and would occupy himself for hours reading and writing, but his chief hobby was working in wood. He often made model yachts which he sold to his various friends, and in this way his life was brightened a little. Poor lad, it was hard for him not to be able to speak or hear the voices of those he loved, or join in their merry games; but God is Love, and if. He takes one blessing away, He often gives another in its place.

When Charlie reached the age of sixteen, his delicate frame showed symptoms of disease; his cheeks, once rosy and plump, were now pale and thin, and his step lost the life and buoyancy of youth. Those who loved him grew very anxious; it seemed as though their treasure was soon to be taken by the good Shepherd, and placed in His heavenly fold, where his ears would be opened, and his tongue unloosed.

Though he was deaf and dumb, a circle of, loving interest was round his earthly path. When he was well he made himself useful in many ways. He had a great desire to do what was right, and spent a good deal of time reading his Bible, and was frequently seen on his knees in prayer. It was evident that God was working in him, showing him that he was a sinner, and needed a Saviour.

His fragile form seemed to get weaker day by day, and he took but little interest in things around him; but it pleased God to let him rally for a short time. Before he was taken home, he had a beautiful dream which made him so happy. He dreamed he saw Jesus standing at the foot of his bed, clothed in a beautiful robe. His glorious person and tender look of love filled Charlie’s heart with joy. He held in His hand a scroll which He unrolled until it rested on the floor. He held it before Charlie, who saw written on it in black ink from the top to the bottom all the sins of his past short life; for, though deaf and dumb, he was not free from sin; all his unkind deeds, actions, and thoughts were there recorded in the book of God.

While looking at this picture of his past sinful life, he saw Jesus pass His finger down the center of the parchment, leaving behind a deep stain of blood, which showed him that the blood of Jesus had cleansed all his sins. After this he thought Jesus rolled up the scroll and cast it behind His back, which gave Charlie the assurance that his sins were forgiven and forgotten, and he heard words which filled his heart with joy. Jesus said, “I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for Mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.” (Isa. 43:25.) “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isa. 1:18.) After repeating these words, the Lord Jesus threw around Charlie a beautiful robe of spotless purity and whiteness. Now he was complete in Jesus, arrayed in the garment of Christ’s salvation, and was thus in the loving arms of Jesus, safe and happy forever.

Just as he was being carried away to heaven, he awoke, and was greatly disappointed to find himself still in his own little bed on earth; but he soon felt very happy, for he seemed to know that he was a forgiven child. Nor was it many days before his dream was realized, and he was taken to God’s beautiful home, where sin and suffering are unknown.

ML 03/25/1900

Small and Great.

I heard a sad story of two little boys, aged nine and eleven years, who went from their homes one day and never returned. Their friends at length concluded that they had fallen into the river and were drowned. Six months afterwards their bodies were discovered by some workmen, in a closet of an empty house, the door of which had no handle inside, so they could not open it. The poor little fellows had been shut up and had died there.

How sad it was.

These verses came into my mind, “I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.”

“And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”—Rev. 20:12-15.

What a dreadful time this will be for all those who did not put their trust in the Lord Jesus while they had the opportunity!

But in contrast to this sad scene, we get another “small and great” in Rev. 11:18, “That Thou shouldest give reward unto Thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear Thy name, small and great.”

I wonder if those poor little fellows will be at the “great white throne,” to be judged “according to their works,” or if they will be among those who have been washed from their sins in the precious blood of Christ.

We cannot tell; but let me ask you, dear young friends, how would it be with you, were you called away suddenly?

“For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” James 4:14.

“Oh! what a Saviour is Jesus the Lord.

Well might His name by His saints be adored!

He has redeemed them from hell by His blood,

Saved them forever and brought them

to God.”

ML 03/25/1900

"The Wolf and the Lamb Shall Feed Together."

ONE day, when riding in a street car in one of our large cities. I saw a black horse trotting along contentedly with his load; on his back stood a little white dog turning his head this way and that, and barking vociferously at the passersby, while the driver looked on with evident satisfaction, as people were attracted by the strange sight.

The horse did not seem at all annoyed by his noisy little rider; and the dog seemed to have all confidence in the horse.

This scene led my thoughts to the happy time when the fierce wolf and the gentle lamb shall dwell together; when the timid little kid shall lie down by the leopard and not be hurt; when the bear instead of destroying the cow, shall feed with it; and when a little child shall lead the young lion and the calf and the fatling, side by side; and when even the poisonous serpent shall lose its poison. Do you not think, dear children, that will be a very blessed time? Not only will the wild, ferocious animals be gentle and tame, and go kindly on together, and be subject even to a little child; but the barren, desert places of the earth will be made to rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It will be a time when there will be great joy and peace and happiness.

When I was little, as some of the readers of this paper now are, I was charmed with this beautiful picture that God’s word brings before us; and in my childish heart, I wondered if I would live to see that wonderful and blessed day.

May be some of my little readers are ready to ask, When will these things be? I will tell you, It will be when Jesus comes. The curse that was brought in through man’s sin will then be lifted from the earth and man and beast will be made glad and happy. But before Jesus comes to bring about this better state of things, He will come into the air with a shout and call all who believe in Him up to meet Him, and will take them to the Father’s house, there to learn wondrous things; and then He will bring them with Him to the earth, and will reign in righteousness over a redeemed earth and people.

Are you ready for Jesus to come? If not, do not rest until you can say, Jesus is my Saviour. Then when Jesus calls, you will go to meet Him, and when He comes to reign, you will reign with Him over a glad and rejoicing earth.

ML 03/25/1900

Answers to Questions of Feb. 4th, 1900.

1.“Iscariot.” John 6:71.

2.“A little while.” John 15:16-17-18-19.

3.“Mary.” John 20:11.

4. “Twelve.” 6:13.

5.“How is it that Thou,” etc. 4:9.

6.“Elias.” 1:21.

7.“Golgotha.” 19:17.

8.“Olives.” 8:1.

9.“Officers.” 7:46.

10.“Didymus.” 11:16.

11.“Samaria.” 4:7.

12.“Hosanna! Blessed is,” etc. 12:13.

13.“Except I shall see in,” etc. 20:25.

14.“Pilate,” 19:1

15.“He that is without,” etc. 8:7.

16.“Eternal life.” 10:28.

17.“Rabbi, Thou art the,” etc. 1:49.

18.“Dost thou believe on,” etc. 9:35.

The first letter of each answer spells, “I am the Good Shepherd.” John 10:11.

Without the aid of a concordance, or help from others, give chapter and verse from Mark’s gospel, of each of the scriptures quoted below; also the one composed of the words in the capital letters.

1.“For what shall it profit a man, if HE shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

2.“Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she HATH done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.”

3.“And the multitude, crying aloud, began to desire him to do as he had ever DONE unto them.”

4.“And Jesus saith unto them, ALL ye shall be offended because of Me this night: for it is written, I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.”

5.“Therefore I say unto you, what THINGS soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

6.“And one of the scribes came, and having heard them, reasoning together, and perceived that He had answered them WELL, asked Him, “What is the first commandment of all?”

ML 04/01/1900

When the Bee Stung Mother.

A young boy was once asked how long he had known his Saviour, and if he was sure that all his sins were forgiven. “Oh, yes,” he replied, “I know that they are all forgiven; I am quite sure of that.”

“When did you first know and understand that?” asked his friend.

“When the bee stung Mother,” said the boy quickly.

“When the bee stung Mother! Tell me what you mean, my boy.”

“Sir,” said the boy, “I have a mother, who had for some years told me what Jesus had done for me. But I never really understood nor realized how He had taken my place, and died in my stead, until one summer afternoon, when playing at the door of our cottage. Mother was ironing in the kitchen, at the door, with her sleeves rolled up. Suddenly, while I was playing around the doorstep, a large and apparently much excited bee, came buzzing round and round my head. It, no doubt, had been hurt, and seemed determined to sting. I was frightened and tried once or twice to drive it away with my handkerchief; but round and round my head it came, closer each time. At last, in despair, I ran inside to get away from my enemy, and hastened to my mother, who had been watching my unwise efforts to free myself from it, and with a cry I hid myself under her long, white apron.

Amused at my fear, but with motherly care, she put her iron down, and with a smile, put her arms outside, as it were to assure me that I had full protection.

This was hardly done, before the bee settled upon one of her arms, and before she realized that it was not wise to let the angry little insect upon her, the bee had stung her so deeply that the poor thing was unable to draw out its sting, and in an exhausted state crawled slowly down her arm.

My mother, who felt the sting sharply, was looking at the bee crawling down her arm. A thought came to her, which was the means of my salvation. She said to me, ‘There, you may come out now; the bee has stung Mother instead of you; come out, and look at it crawling on Mother’s arm. It cannot hurt you now.’

Timidly I lifted the apron, and put my head out to see. There was the bee still crawling down my mother’s arm; and she, pointing to the sting higher up, said, ‘There it is; it has stung Mother instead of you.’

Half afraid and a little sorrowful for my mother, I looked at the sting. My mother then went on to explain to me how I might play with the bee now, and even take it in my hand, as it could not sting twice, and therefore could not sting me now.

She well applied the lesson, explaining to me how it was a picture of what she had for a long time been telling me, about Jesus having taken my place, and was punished in my stead.

I had learned and often repeated that verse, ‘By His stripes we are healed,’ but I never understood till then, with the bee and the sting before us, that it was just a picture of what Jesus had permitted to be done to Himself—to be punished instead of us, who deserved to be punished; and if we believe that He has taken our place and been punished in our stead, we shall not be punished. Yes; and how true are these three short lines—

‘Payment God will not twice demand;

First at my bleeding Surety’s hand,

And then again at mine.’

That amount of realization! I shall never forget it. It was all so clear now. I saw and understood for the first time what Mother had often taught me—that God would not punish me, because He had already punished Jesus in my stead. Yes, sir, it was when the bee stung Mother. I have rejoiced from that moment in believing and being assured that Jesus died for me on Calvary.”

ML 04/01/1900

The Babe of Bethlehem.

ABOUT 1900 years ago, if you had gone into a certain stable in the town of Bethlehem, of Judea, you would have seen a very wonderful little Babe lying in a manger. Wasn’t that a strange place to find a little babe, having only a manger for a cradle? Well, it was because there was no room for these poor people in the inn or hotel.

But who was this Babe that was born at Bethlehem in a stable, and laid in a manger? He was a young king and was to be the Ruler of Israel. You will find Him mentioned in Micah 5:2, where it says: “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me, that is to be Ruler in Israel.” You will also find this Child spoken of in Isaiah 9:6; “For unto us a Child is born; unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Surely this must have been a wonderful Babe! Indeed one of His names was Wonderful! Who was it? I think I hear some of you saying it was JESUS. Yes, it was Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus had come as a King and as a Saviour. He had come to rule over Israel, and He had, come to save sinners. They rejected Him as King, but this did not keep Him from laying down His life on the cross, that He might save sinners through His shed blood. He saves all who believe in Him. He is now exalted a Prince and a Saviour. Multitudes of men and women, boys and girls, are being saved through faith in His name. And although He is now rejected as King by the Jews, He will soon come again in great power and glory, and will make Himself known to the Jews as their King, whom they rejected when He came as the lowly Babe and the humble Man, and then they will repent of their sin in having crucified Him. They will then mourn and weep and sorrow with great sorrow, when they look on Him whom they pierced, and He will forgive them and become their King and reign over them and over all the earth.

Ah! dear children, if you believe in Jesus now, He will not only forgive all your sins and save you, but He will make you kings, too, and when He comes to reign, He will have you to sit on thrones, too, and reign with Him. Will not that be blessed? I wonder how many of my little readers expect to sit on thrones and reign with Jesus? Let each one ask himself or herself: “Shall I reign with Jesus?” A. H. R.

ML 04/01/1900

God's Care.

MORE than forty years ago, a little girl, who was then ten years of age, was sent out by her mother to gather some chips. As there were chips laying under the corn-crib, which was set up on four posts, the little girl went in there to fill her basket. While busy at work she heard a voice call her name: “Sarah, Sarah!” The voice sounded like that of an older brother who was hundreds of miles away at the time, so little Sarah, though feeling startled by this voice, which seemed so plain to her, thought she must be mistaken, for on looking around she could see no one, and she went on with her work. But soon again came the voice, and this time so urgent— “Sarah, come quick!”—that she ran at once from under the crib and towards the house. She had scarcely got well away from the crib, when down it came with a great crash. Little Sarah stood in awe, looking at the heap before her. Her mother came running out in great alarm, fearing that her child had been crushed to death under the fallen crib with its tons of corn.

But God’s care had been over the dear child, and just as distinctly as He called Samuel on the night that He had a message to give to him for Eli, the priest, so did He call little Sarah on that eventful day when He was about to deliver her from the crib which was so near ready to fall.

Little Samuel “did not yet know the Lord” on that night when the Lord spoke to him, but the Lord had His eye upon him and He was about to bring him to Himself. And Sarah did not know the Lord on that day when she was preserved from so sudden and terrible a death; but the Lord’s eye was upon her, and she was dear to Him, and He afterwards made her to know Him, and enabled her, through grace, to live for His glory.

Now, dear Children, I would have you think of God’s watchful and loving care, and how His eye is upon His own dear ones, and His thoughts towards them; and how He delivers them from dangers and difficulties Often we are in danger and know nothing of our danger until we are taken out of it and set in a safe place; just as with little Sarah. But God knows all the dangers and difficulties that beset our path. May all who know Him, go constantly to Him for protection and help.

“For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their prayers.”

1 Pet. 3:12.

I think you would enjoy reading the third chapter of First Samuel, where the account of the Lord’s speaking to little Samuel is given. R.

ML 04/01/1900

An Incident on the Stagecoach.

THE passengers were seated, and the stage, running between St. George and Hamilton, on the Bermuda Islands, was about to start, when a man came hurrying up and jumped into the coach. He was large, and would have been a very fine-looking man, had it not been, alas! for evil habits, under the influence of which he seemed to have fallen. His face was red his breath was strong, and from an inside pocket of his coat, which hung open, dangled a flask of liquor. As he seated himself and glanced at those who were in the coach, his fellow passengers thought he would not prove a very happy addition to their company; but no word was spoken—only significant glances exchanged.

The stage had not proceeded far when he leaned over toward the only lady passenger in the coach and asked her permission to light his pipe. She told him she would not object to it as far as she was personally concerned, whereupon he took out a match and struck it, preparatory to lighting his pipe. The driver, who had heard the conversation, turned about and said, “I object—it’s against the regulations.” This gave courage to one of the passengers who spoke up and said, “I object.” This exasperated him and he began to use threatening language; but while denouncing the driver and the passengers in general, all but two of whom opposed him, he did not use unclean or ugly words. To these two, the lady and her husband, he appealed as to the treatment he had received from the others which he thought very shabby and bad. He said he would have them taken up and dealt with, by the authorities. He then began to tell of the place he held in Her Majesty’s service, and how he had been here and there nearly all over the world. By this time his two friends, who were seated facing him, began to be thoroughly interested in him for they recognized in his fine face and head, a naturally superior person, though one who had fallen under the power of drink. As they were Christians, they were interested in his soul and thought may be the Lord had a message for this man through them. As he spoke of the long voyages he had made to distant lands, one of them leaned over and said to him that there was another voyage he was making—the voyage of life which would end in eternity, and then asked him if he was ready to meet God, repeating at the same time that little verse “Every one of us shall give account of himself to God.”

“Oh! for that,” he said, “I think I stand a pretty good chance.”

“On what ground,” asked his friend, “do you stand a good chance?”

“Well,” he replied, somewhat thoughtfully, “I never did a dishonorable thing in my life.” This assertion he repeated, and went on further to vindicate his character.

“Ah,” said his friend, “that may do for your fellowman but it will not do for God; His eye searches you through and through and finds in you what is not fit for His presence.” Although this staggered him a little, he still maintained his uprightness and honesty of character. Again his friend told him that would not do—he must give account of himself to God, and he was a poor, lost sinner and could not stand in His presence; he was like a piece of white paper that was marked and soiled —it might look pure and white enough if seen by a dim light, but when brought into the full light was useless because it was so defiled; and this would be his condition if brought into the light of God’s presence. He did not seem to resent this plain-speaking, but after a little pause he began to relate adventures in which he had been and narrow escapes that he had had; among other things that he related, he told of “the craft” in which he had been, having been overturned on four different occasions, he, with others, being thrown out into the merciless waves ; and the last time he was an hour and twenty minutes in the water.

ML 04/08/1900

The Babe and the Angels.

YOU have already read about the wonderful little Babe that lay in a manger, in a stable at Bethlehem. I suppose the great people in the inn, and the multitudes coming and going, thought nothing of all this. Perhaps some servants who came to the stable to look after the animals, saw the little Babe, but just thought it was some poor people who could not have a place in the inn, and were not worth noticing. Is it not wonderful that God’s blessed Son, who created the world, and the sun and moon and stars, should be born into this world as a King, and yet nobody know or care?

Ah! but if the inhabitants of the earth did not know or care, the inhabitants of heaven knew, and they cared, too. To the angels that was a wonderful night when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The angels could look upon the face of that wondrous Babe and see their Creator. “God was manifest in the flesh,” and there they could see Him. They saw, and rejoiced. Wondrous sight! If you will read in the second chapter of Luke, you will see there were some shepherds that night in the country about Bethlehem, watching over their flocks. No doubt these shepherds were men who feared God, and God would have them know the good news of the birth of the young King. And so He sent the message by one of these worshipping angels. “And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you: ye shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”

Thus, the angel delivered his message to the shepherds—the good news that a Saviour was born—and gave them a sign, so that they could go and see for themselves. And then we get not only one angel, but a multitude, and they are all full of praise. “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Dear children, these angels were full of praise when they looked on the face of that little Babe, and saw in Him their Creator. But that Babe is more to you than Creator. He is a Saviour. Not only was He born, but He has died for your sins. Should not you, then, praise God for such a Saviour? And can you not tell others that Jesus has been born a Saviour, and that He has died to save?

H. R.

ML 04/08/1900

"With All His Strength."

WHEN little Frank declared that he loved his mother “with all his strength,” he was asked to explain what he meant. “Well, I’ll tell you,” said he, “you see, we live up on the fourth floor of this large house, and there is no elevator, and the coal is kept down in the basement. Mother is busy all the time, and is not very strong; so I see to it that the coal box is never empty. I carry the coal up four flights of stairs. It takes all my strength to get it up here. Now, isn’t that loving my mother with all my strength?”

Little Frank showed in this way his love for his mother. He not only would say that he loved her, but he would show it in this way. Is there not a lesson in this for little boys and girls, who say they love the Lord Jesus? Can others see that you love Him? If you are doing things to please Him, and in this way show your love, they can.— Selected.

ML 04/08/1900

God's Love and God's Gift.

DEAR Children; I want to tell you something about God’s love, and how He has proved His love to us. When the Lord Jesus was down here, He told of God’s love, and love must show itself; so the greatness of God’s love was shown in what He gave. I will tell you a little story that will bring it forcibly before us. When Martin Luther was first giving the Bible to the German nation, in their own language, a scrap of paper with a part of John 3:16, was blown, or thrown, into the street from the house where the precious Bible was being printed. It was picked up by a little child, and carried home. Only eight words were on the bit of paper, and the words were these; “God so loved the world that He gave”—the rest of the verse was torn away. The family read it and they wondered what God gave. They had never seen a Bible and they did not know God loved them. The priests had always told them, God was angry with them, and must be appeased by penance, alms and masses. They had been taught to believe that God was asking something from them. But here they saw that God had given something. They soon obtained a Bible, and, behold, in glad surprise, they saw what God had given in His love,—His only begotten Son. They believed the glad tidings, and were saved. They had learned God’s love, and “there is no fear in love.”

Now, dear children, may this great and wonderful love of God in giving His dear and only begotten Son to die on Calvary’s cross for us, win our young hearts to adore and praise Him; and then we shall sing through everlasting day,

“Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, . . . . to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” Rev. 1:5, 6.

C. C.

ML 04/08/1900

"May I Be Sure?"

“May I be sure, Mamma?” said Kitty, as the good news of God’s free love was read to her, and she was told there was forgiveness for her. “Yes, my dear, you may.” “But how, Mamma?” she asked. “Simply by believing what God has said, for He never says anything but what is true, and He never breaks a promise.” “And what has God said, Mamma?” asked Kitty.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.” John 6:47. —Selected.

I may be sure, for Jesus died

My sins to put away.

I may be sure, for Jesus rose,

My sins are gone for aye.

ML 04/08/1900

An Incident on the Stagecoach.

When he spoke of these things his two fellow passengers who sat opposite, and whose interest and sympathy were deepening, told him that God’s care had been over him, and that the Lord had spared him from a terrible death, perhaps to bring him to Himself. This touched the poor man’s heart, and he began to grow tender as his friends spoke of the love that was in God’s heart and how God was seeking such as he; of how utterly worthless his own goodness was in God’s sight, but that when he was willing to take his true place as lost, before God, he would be where God would take Him up. He listened but had little to say in reply. After a minute’s silence, he jerked the flask of liquor from his pocket and dashed it upon the hard-stone road, breaking it to pieces and spilling its contents. This caused the passengers who had but imperfectly heard the conversation, to open their eyes in astonishment; but one of the two who had been talking with him leaned over a little and quietly said “That’s good!” Another minute and that great strong man was bowed, his face upon his hands, and he weeping and sobbing like a little child, while his frame shook with emotion. The poor man was deeply moved. Significant glances were exchanged among the passengers who scarcely seemed to understand it. But after the first outburst of emotion had passed, the two who were seeking his soul’s good, again put before him God’s grace in seeking after him. When he was able to control himself so as to speak, he began to denounce himself in strong terms. What a change! Before it had been only self-justification, now he recognized that he was far from being what he should be.

As the, coach rolled on, the conversation continued, and again and again the poor man was overcome and burst into tears. The fountains of his heart seemed broken up. He spoke with tenderness and affection of his wife and two boys, and of his desires for them; he spoke, too, of the difficulties of leading a better life, connected as he was with a service that led him to write for others what was dishonest and untrue, and which thing he seemed to abhor. In different ways he manifested his gratitude to the two who had manifested such an interest in him, and when the journey was finally ended, with a warm grasp of the hand, and in a tone that made one feel that the words came from the heart, he said, “You have done me good.” One of them said to him, “I trust, through the grace of God, we may meet in the glory!” A warm pressure of the hand and a look that spoke more than words, and they parted, perhaps never to meet on earth again.

ML 04/15/1900

A Father's Love.

A POOR miner who was living in England, had but one son to whom he was tenderly attached. In the morning when he went to work he would generally take his little boy with him, both of them would place themselves in a large basket to which a strong rope was tied, then they would go down rapidly into the depth of the mine, and when work was finished they would be taken up to the light again in the same manner. One evening when on their way up as usual, the father suddenly heard a terrible cracking above his head, and looking up he noticed with indescribable terror that the rope which held them up was almost broken, and that only a few weak threads now kept them from falling into the fearful abyss below. What could he do! It was evident that the rope was not strong enough to carry both of them any further, and there was not a moment to be lost. So he resolved at once to sacrifice his life to save his child. Hastily putting his boy into the bottom of the basket, he kissed him for the last time, and weeping said to him, “Charles, kiss your mother for me.” As he said those words he threw himself into the dark abyss below.

How great was that father’s love for his child. But what was that love, compared with the love which led the Lord Jesus to come from the bright glory of His home in heaven, down to this dark, wicked world to die on the cross for His enemies—for lost sinners.

Oh. how very great His love for us must have been. Yes, His love was stronger than death and the power of sin. May each dear young reader bow before Him. He is still longing to fill your heart with the knowledge of His love.

“In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.”

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:9, 10.

R. R.

ML 04/15/1900

"We See Jesus Crowned with Glory and Honor." Heb. 2:9.

Crowned with glory and with honor,

But He does not reign as yet,

O’er the universal empire,

Which is His by right and debt.

He shall have supreme dominion

All things yet shall own His sway,

Every knee shall bow before Him,

Every will His will obey.

Crowned with glory and with honor,

But He wears them not alone,

He has purchased crowns of glory

For each chosen ransomed one.

But their joy will be to cast them

Down at His dear feet again,

Singing as they gather ‘round Him,

Thou art worthy who wast slain.

ML 04/15/1900

The Babe and the Shepherds.

AFTER the angel had told to the shepherds the good news of the Saviour born in Bethlehem, and the multitude of the heavenly host had filled that midnight scene with their praises to God, they went back to heaven. Then, “the shepherds said one to another, let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath make known unto us.” These good shepherds were not indifferent to the message the Lord had sent them by the angel. It was good news they had heard, and they wanted to see for themselves. “And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this Child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”

Now, dear children, I want you to notice that not only did these shepherds go to see for themselves, according to the word of the angel, but “they came with haste.” They did not wait till some other time, but at once, in the darkness of the night they hurried off to see the Babe lying in the manger. Was it not good that they should go at once to see what the Lord had told them about? And is it not good to attend at once to what God tells us in His word? If God tells us about His Son whom He has given to be a Saviour, and asks us to believe on Him, why should we put it off till tomorrow? Why not now?

Notice also that these shepherds did not keep the good news to themselves. “They made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this Child.” And should not we, too, make known the good news we have heard of Jesus? We can tell people about “a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord,” and how He has suffered on the cross for lost sinners, so that whoever believes in Him may be saved.

You will notice, too, in the 20th verse of the second chapter of Luke, that the shepherds went back to their flocks, “glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.” They believed the angel, and then went and saw for themselves, and returned full of joy and praise. Now, you too, have heard the good news. Do you, then, believe? And do you rejoice and praise God for the gift of His Son? And do you tell others of the good things God has made known to you?

H. R.

ML 04/15/1900

My Boy, Here Is a Watch for You.

I WOULD like to tell my dear little friends a story which I have often heard a servant of the Lord Jesus tell.

A Christian man once visited a school and asked permission to speak, for a short time, to the children. Having received permission, he asked the boys to stand side by side, and had the tallest boy stand at the head of the line, and the smallest at the foot. When he had them as he wanted them, he took his watch out of his pocket, and handing it to the first boy, said, “My boy, here is a watch for you.” The big boy was so surprised, and did not think the man meant what he said, so did not take the watch. He passed it on to the next boy, and he, following the example of the first, would not take it. So the man passed on from one boy to another, and not one would accept the watch. They all seemed to think the man did not mean what he said. When he came to the last and smallest boy in the class, he said, as he did to the others, “My boy, here is a watch for you.” So the little fellow, taking the man at his word, and not waiting to be asked a second time, put out his hand at once, and took the watch and put it into his pocket, saying: “Thank you, sir.” So the watch was his. He believed the man meant what he said, and the moment he took the watch, it was his.

This little story makes me think of something God is offering to little children, and how many are refusing to accept it. He is offering eternal life as a gift, for He says, “The gift of God is eternal life.” Rom. 6:23. He is inviting all, to take of the water of life freely. Rev. 22:17. Eternal life, the water of life, salvation, forgiveness of sins, and many other precious things, He is offering free, to all of the little boys or girls, who will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as their own Saviour. I am sorry to say, there are some who refuse to take these precious things, and prefer to go on in their own ways. But there are some who, like the little boy at the foot of the class, accept what is offered to them, and are happy in Jesus.

Oh! that all our dear little friends were like the little boy who took, at once, what was offered to him and gave thanks for it.

E. B. H.

ML 04/15/1900

"How Much Better Is It to Get Wisdom Than Gold!" (Prov 17:16.)

MANY young people have a strong desire for riches, thinking they would be very happy if only they had plenty of money to spend as they would like. They do not realize that money does not in itself bring happiness, and that the truest gain is found in “godliness with contentment.” God tells us, as we see in the verse at the head of this little article, that it is better to get wisdom than gold; but we find that many who get gold do not care for wisdom, the gold occupying their time and hearts, and thus it is loss to them and not gain. But let us remember that true wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord.

I wish to tell you about a boy, or young man, in the distant land of Japan, who had money in his possession, and how sorrow and loss came to him through it, instead of happiness or good.

His father was a famous naval engineer, and a respectable man, having a good name. He died leaving a fortune to his wife and son. The son thought, now that he had fallen heir to much money, and would soon be able to spend it as he wished, that he would not need to make any exertions; knowledge and wisdom were not cared for by him, and so, when in school, he would not study. He associated with idle comrades and soon learned many bad ways. As another said of him, “The riches turned to be a snare and spoiled him altogether.” He was determined to have money, and if he could not obtain it by simply asking his mother for it, he would resort to lying and deception in order to get it. And when he got the money he used it to gratify the desires for pleasure, of himself and his ungodly companions.

Thus he degraded himself and fell lower and lower into the depths of wickedness.

His dear mother who was an earnest Christian, pleaded with him as to his ways, and warned him of the dreadful consequences of such a course; but all was of no avail. She tried one thing after another until she had exhausted every effort; and, while thus earnestly endeavoring to recover her wayward child, she cried to the Lord for him, and fasted before the Lord. But, as yet, her prayers were unanswered—no effect was seen in his soul.

One day she called her son into her presence and said, “Now, my child, I have brought you up in the Lord, but you will not listen to me nor to the Lord. All the property of your father belongs to you; you have right to spend it out. Go now and spend it as you please, and see if the Lord will permit it.”

The young man was very glad to have his own way and for a time did take his own course; but it was only for a time. The Lord checked him in his evil ways by sending upon him a severe illness. Death stared him in the face; eternity, with its dread realities, seemed very near. Ah! then he was sobered. The teachings of his dear mother—the things he had learned in childhood—came before him. “After death the judgment” was to him a solemn thought; he knew the destiny of an unsaved soul, and he knew that he had earned death by his wicked ways; for “The wages of sin is death.” Thus in the dead stillness of the night, as he pondered these things, the Lord spoke to him; it was the voice of the Lord to his soul, convincing him of sin. No doubt he could look back and see that the riches, from which he had expected so much happiness, had been a curse to him, and not a blessing.

But wait a moment, and hear what God in His grace, did for this poor young man; for he was poor and helpless, and defiled, although having money at his command. The mother’s prayers were about to be answered.

One day some Christians went to the house to read and pray. One of them read the twelfth chapter of Luke; when he came to verses 5, 6 and 7, the young man’s attention was arrested, and he was completely broken down, and right then and there he received the Lord Jesus as his Saviour.

Let me give you the verses that the Lord used to complete the work He had already begun in this young man’s soul. “But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear; Fear Him, which after He hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear Him. Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God. But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore; ye are of more value than many sparrows.”

God had been making him to know His power “to cast into hell,” and was leading him to fear Him; and this verse doubtless came with power to his conscience; then the grace of God in His care for His own, numbering the very hairs of their head, and putting their value far beyond that of the little sparrow, for which He cared; and His cheering word, Fear not, no doubt touched the heart of the young man.

So rejoiced was he, through the love of God that had reached his soul, that he insisted on being baptized that very day. This showed the reality of the work of God in his soul, for baptism in those heathen lands brings with it much of trial.

One in writing of him since God has thus wrought in him says, “He is altogether a new man now, and he is recovering health, too. Who can tell the joy in the heart of the dear mother? But how much more in the Father’s house above!”

Dear children, seek wisdom: “Labor not to be rich.” R.

ML 04/22/1900

The Babe and Simeon.

WHEN the Child was eight days old, they circumcised Him, and called His name JESUS. This name means SAVIOUR, and He was so-called because He was to save His people from their sins. A little later they brought Him to the temple to present Him before the Lord, by means of an offering, according to the law, because He was the first born. It was at this time that Simeon met Him, according to the account given by the Spirit of God in Luke. Let me give you the account in the words of the Holy Ghost.

“And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for Him after the custom of the law, then took he Him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word; for mine eyes have seen Thy Salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.”

This man Simeon was guided by the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost had made known to him that he should not die till he had seen the Saviour. And when they had Jesus in the temple, Simeon came in, and took up that wonderful Babe in his arms and blessed God. What did he see in that little Babe? He saw God’s salvation. “Mine eyes have seen Thy Salvation.” In that little Babe there was salvation prepared of God which was to be announced to all people. That Babe was the glory of Israel, and a light to lighten the Gentiles. And Simeon, holding the Babe in his arms, saw all this in Him—his own salvation, the salvation of the Gentiles, and the salvation of Israel. Oh, what a wonderful Babe! Is it any wonder that one of His names should be called Wonderful?

Dear children, what do you see in that Babe of Bethlehem? Do you see in Him your salvation, like Simeon? May the Holy Ghost teach you what He taught Simeon, and lead you to bless God for His great salvation.

H. R.

ML 04/22/1900

The Letter.

“JAMES, I WANT YOU TO COME AND SEE ME AT SIX O’CLOCK, AFTER YOU HAVE LEFT THE WORKS.

YOUR’S FAITHFULLY,——.”

Promptly, at the time, the young man went to his employer, who had written him the above letter. When he entered the office, after a pause the gentleman looked up from his desk, and inquired, “Do you wish to see me, James?”

Somewhat surprised, holding out the note he had received, he said, “Here is the letter you sent me.”

“Oh! I see; you got my letter. When I sent you the message, you came at once. You believed I wanted to see you.”

“Yes, sir, surely; what else could I do?”

“Well, James, you did quite right to come. See, here is another letter for you; will you attend to that?” At the same time handing him a paper which he had written. James took the paper, and read, “COME UNTO ME, ALL YE THAT LABOR AND ARE HEAVY LADEN, AND, I WILL GIVE YOU REST.”

As he read his lips quivered, his eyes filled with tears. Thrusting his hand into his pocket, he grasped his handkerchief, with which he covered his face, and stood there, not knowing what to do. At length he said, “Am I just to believe in the same way that I believed your letter?”

“Just in the same way,” was the reply.

“If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater.” 1 John 5:9.

That night James saw it all, and went home a happy believer in his Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He saw that he had to believe God, and give Him the same credit and confidence that he would give to the word or message of any trustworthy, business man that he met with in his daily life.

Selected.

ML 04/22/1900

Waiting.

THE other day a little boy was talking with his mamma about an aged friend, who frequently visited their house, when he said, “Mamma, is Mr. B. saved?”

His mamma replied, “Oh, yes, L.; he has been saved for many years. He is only waiting for the Lord to take him to His home.”

The little boy thought a moment, and then said, “So am I waiting, Mamma. Wouldn’t it be nice if the Lord Jesus should come and get us tonight?”

Are you, my little friends, waiting for the Lord Jesus to come and take you to His own home, like the old man and the little boy; or are you afraid if He should come, He would leave you behind? He wants you to trust in Him now, then when He comes, you will be ready. He is coming soon, for He has said, “Surely I come quickly.”

ML 04/22/1900

"The Wind and the Sea Obey Him."

IT was Lord’s day morning; the wind was whirling and blowing, and dark, ominous clouds were overhead, threatening a downfall any moment.

A young Christian woman looked out upon the dreary scene; it was her wish to meet a little company of God’s people and go with them to attend a meeting, but there was a large bay to cross, and the’ angry waters, lashed by the strong wind, were rolling and tossing. The prospect as she looked forth, seemed hopeless enough. But ah! there is ever a resource in God; the “stormy wind” fulfills His word, and the seas obey His voice. This dear young woman had learned to know the Lord and to put her trust in Him; silently she lifted her heart to Him, asking Him to “rebuke the wind.”

But Satan, who is ready to harass and trouble God’s people, was at hand, and began to assail her. He whispered to her “Do you think the Lord will hear your prayer?” She recognized that this was a temptation from Satan, and said “Yes, I have asked by the Spirit, and if it, was His will; and He will certainly do it.” She looked out and lo! the wind had fallen. She was rejoicing in the Lord’s goodness in this, for with the going down of the wind the waters of the bay would after a little become more quiet. But soon the rain began to fall; then Satan renewed his attack; this time he said, “Yes, the wind has been rebuked, but, it rains, it rains!” “The Lord will rebuke the rain also,” was her reply.

In less than two hours the storm had cleared away, and in time, too, for these dear people to get together and cross the bay to attend their meeting.

Let us learn from this, dear children, to put our trust in God. Wherever we may be, or whatever our circumstances may be, He is thinking of us and watching over us.

“What time I am afraid I will trust in Thee.” Ps. 56:3, would be a nice little verse for you to learn.

And if Satan assails us, let us turn right to God, as this dear Christian did. We can always overcome him, if we take “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” with which to meet him. He cannot stand against that. If we are tried by wind and storm, and Satan buffets us through these things, we can tell him that the fire, the hail, the snow, the stormy wind are but fulfilling God’s word, and that all can only work for good to those who love God.

These thoughts you will find in Ps. 148:8, and Romans 8:28.

When God gives relief to those who ask in faith, He gives it very quickly. “He sendeth forth His commandment upon earth; His word runneth very swiftly.”

ML 04/29/1900

That Word Eternity.

It was only one word that a boy had written on the path that led through the two rows of cottages; but it attracted a good deal of attention. The word was ETERNITY, and it was written in plain capitals that could be easily seen and read. There was also a cross underneath it. I am not sure what was the meaning of that; but suppose it was added to attract the attention of passers-by more easily.

Now if there is one thing more than another which most people, and most boys and girls put aside, and do not like to think about—it is eternity. But the boy, having been brought to the knowledge of Jesus. as his own Saviour, had a desire to do something for Him, and, hoping that someone might be led by it to look at Jesus and be saved, he had written it on the ground.

Sometimes a single word has done much good, and I hope this may be the case with the word before us. The present time of our lives is given to us to think about and prepare for eternity.

I hope, dear reader, this word may be fixed on your memory, like the man who tore up a tract that was given him; his eye caught sight of the word eternity, and he could not forget it. He had no rest till he could rest in Jesus, which is the best of all rests, for it calms and satisfies the heart. in a way that nothing else will.

Selected.

ML 04/29/1900

Black, but Not with Sin.

I WILL relate to you a true, short story about a little girl of Only about three years of age. Her name is Gracie; one day when her governess was out for a walk with her, she saw a chimney sweep coming towards them, said to be more black than usual. My little friend asked permission of her governess to say something to the sweep. Liberty was granted, and to the amazement of governess and sweep, the little dear recited a verse of the well-known hymn, learned on her mother’s lap, which runs thus:—

“God in mercy sent His Son

To a world by sin undone;

Jesus Christ was crucified—

‘Twas for sinners Jesus died.”

The sweep replied, “Yes, that’s it, that’s it, my child; that’s enough for you, and me, and for us all!” Afterwards, when the dear child was asked why she wished to say her verse to the sweep, she answered to this effect, “that she thought as he looked so very black he must be a very bad, wicked sinner, and her verse might do him good!”

There is no harm, of course, in being black with soot, if it cannot be helped; but it is dreadful to be black with sin, which God hates. Soap and water, you know, remove soot, but not sin. When the sweep walks down the street on a Sunday you would not notice any difference between him and other people. Sin is of a deeper dye, and nothing short of the precious blood of Christ can wash it away. It was for guilty sinners that God in such boundless love and rich grace sent His Son to die. Dear child, if you are old enough, do you yet know what it is to be clear of your sins, and made as white as snow? You will remember that God in His word says, “Though your sins be as scarlet, they, shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isa. 1:18.)

Some people really do try remedies of their own to get rid of their sin’s, such as good works, alms deeds, prayers, and such like (good things in their right place), as though sins were outside on the skin, like the sweep’s soot; but rest assured that God’s remedy is the only one, and His word also says, “The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from ALL SIN.” (1 John 1:7.)

Then, my dear young reader, if you know yourself a needy sinner, and unfit for the presence of a holy God, we do beseech you to receive the Lord Jesus by faith now as your Saviour and God’s remedy for sin and ruin, thereby securing for yourself a relationship with God and an eternal portion—the Father’s house above, with Jesus, where Gracie, and her mother, and the governess, and, we trust, the sweep will be! May God in mercy grant it, for Christ’s sake Amen.

J. N. Selected.

ML 04/29/1900

"Not Afraid to Die."

A LITTLE girl was near death, and looking un to a kind lady, who was her teacher, she said, “I am dying, but I am not afraid to die, for Jesus will call me up to heaven. He has taken away all my sins, and I want to go and see Him. I love Jesus more than anyone else.”

ML 04/29/1900

Jesus Loves You.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

He regards you from on high,

Freely gave Himself a ransom,

For your souls to bleed and die.

Come then children come to Jesus,

You may come to Him and live;

They are happy, Oh! so happy,

Who their hearts to Jesus give.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

He is risen from the grave;

He has robes and crowns of glory,

And is mighty now to save.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

And He seeks your heart to win;

He has every blessing for you,

And can make you white and clean.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

Now He reigns in heaven above;

He will give you life eternal,

His is an unchanging love.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

He delights to hear you sing;

He delights to hear your voices,

Come your sweetest praises bring.

Little children, Jesus loves you,

And He soon will come again;

Soon He’ll take His throne and glory,

All who love Him then will reign.

H. T.

ML 04/29/1900

The Babe and Old Anna.

OLD Anna was a prophetess, and lived in the temple. She had been a long time a widow, and was about 84 years old. But old as she was she continued to serve God, and served Him “with fastings and prayers night and day.”

Now this old woman was looking for redemption to come to Israel, according to the promises of God; and when they brought in the Babe into the temple, she came in at the same instant, and at once recognized that the redemption she was looking for, was to come through this wonderful Babe, and she gave thanks to the Lord. Like Simeon she had seen the Salvation of God in that little Babe, and her heart was full of praise. Dear children, are your hearts full of praise to God because He has sent His Son into the world to be a Saviour?

But there were others besides old Anna who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem; and she knew them all. And what do you think she did? Well, she spoke to them all about that Babe that was to bring the deliverance they were looking for. She was like the shepherds; she did not keep the good news to herself, but told it to others that they also might rejoice.

Now if you have believed the good news about Jesus the Saviour, you, too, can tell others about Him, that they also, may rejoice.

H. R.

ML 04/29/1900

Bible Questions for May.

As this begins the 2nd term of questions, we trust our young friends will take renewed interest in searching the Scriptures.

We are thankful for the interest that has been shown and the many answers which were sent in, during the past term, and trust all will continue the study and many more he added to the list.

Those sending the answers, will please write their name, age and address plainly.

Rewards will be given (D. V.) for correct answers received until May, 1901, to those not getting help from concordance or older persons.

Give chapter and verse from Luke’s gospel, of each of the scriptures quoted below; also the one composed of the words in the capital letters.

1.“And THE men that held Jesus mocked Him, and smote Him.”

2.“But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the SON of man with a kiss?”

3.“But rather seek ye the kingdom OF God: and all these things shall be added unto you.”

4.“This MAN receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.”

5.“Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord, when He COMETH, shall find watching.”

6.“When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down AT Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”

7.“The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at AN hour when he is not aware.”

8.“In that HOUR Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank Thee, O Father. Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.”

9.“And WHEN he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.”

10.“Why are YE troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?”

11.“Of those eighteen, upon whom the tower of Siloam fell, and slew them THINK ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?”

12.“And as the people were in expectation. and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ or NOT.”

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily.” Acts 18:11.

ML 05/06/1900

The Sun.

If you turn to Gen. 1:16, you will find the first mention that God makes of the sun, or “greater light.” It was to rule the day, give light upon the earth, and divide the light from darkness. We can think of what a dark, dismal world this would be without the genial rays of the sun, which the Lord God made to cheer and gladden His creation.

It is the center around which a vast system of planets revolve, and has a most powerful attraction for every other body. Now, I want to ask my reader who it is that answers to this great light in the New Testament. At once you reply, Jesus. Yes, it is quite true, and if you will read the first chapter of John’s gospel you will see how it is. As we are unable to look upon the bright, shining sun with our natural eyes, no more could we gaze upon the glory of Jesus which He had with the Father before coming into this world. But when there is a covering over the sun, as an eclipse, then we can look directly at it; and, when Jesus came into the world He veiled His glory by taking upon Himself the form of man, in such a way that man could look upon Him, and those whose eyes were enlightened saw in Him only light, without a particle of darkness. 1 John 1:1-5.

This world, morally and spiritually, is just what the natural world would be if we had no sun—a scene of utter darkness. Therefore did the Lord Jesus say: “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness. John 12:46.

So we see that by nature every one of us, without exception, is in a state of darkness. If you were lost in a dark cave you could never get out, unless you had a light, and someone to tell you the way. Jesus is the light and He is the way. If you believe in Jesus you shall not abide in darkness; if you follow Jesus you shall not walk in darkness. John 8:12; 12:46.

The Lord Jesus, in His great love to you and me, sent His Apostle Paul to the Gentiles, “to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God.” And what is the blessed result? “That they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith that is in Me.” Acts 26:18.

Dear reader; have you believed in that light that you might be a child of light? John 12:36.

G. B.G

ML 05/06/1900

The Bible.

MOST children are fond of reading; but how many care to read the Book of books? Do not think, dear children, that the Bible is only for grown-up people to read. When little Samuel lived in the Temple he read the word of God; and Timothy also knew the holy scriptures from a child.

Some of you have doubtless read a little book called “Mary Jones and her Bible,” which narrates the pleasant story of a Welsh girl, who walked fifty miles in order to procure a Bible for herself.

The Bible! the Bible! more precious than gold,

The hopes and the glories its pages unfold

It speaks of a Saviour and tells of His love,

It shows us the way to the mansions above.

The Bible! the Bible! we hail it with joy;

Its truths and its glories our tongues shall employ;

We’ll sing of its triumphs, we’ll tell of its worth,

And send its glad tidings all over the

earth.

—Selected.

ML 05/06/1900

The Babe and the Wise Men from the East.

ALL those we have been looking at in the second chapter of Luke, who rejoiced at the birth of Jesus, the young King, were Jews. They belonged to the country where Jesus was born. But God would have His Son honored by others also, and so He made known to some wise men in the East that the young King was born. They saw His star in the East, and came to Jerusalem to worship Him, asking: “Where is He that is born King of the Jews?”

But the Babe was not now in Jerusalem; so they went to Bethlehem, and the star which they had seen in the East went before them till it came and stood over where the young Child was. You will find the account of this in the second chapter of Matthew.

Well, “when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” Ah! yes; these wise men were, no doubt, taught of God, and they rejoiced greatly at the star which led them into the presence of the young King. Many kings have been born in this world, and many a time there has been rejoicing at their birth and at their crowning; but there never was such a King as this. This King, though born in a stable and cradled in a manger, was from heaven, and was God’s eternal Son, the King of kings, and Lord of lords. And well might those who knew Him rejoice when they saw Him. These wise men of the East, “when they were come into the house,” where Jesus was, “saw the young Child with Mary, His mother, and fell down and worshipped Him, and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold and frankincense and myrrh.”

Was it not beautiful to see these men make a long journey to another country in order to do honor to the young King of the Jews, because He was the King God had sent, His own blessed Son, who is worthy of the homage and praise of every creature? But that young King was rejected by the Jews, and then He went and died for their sins, and died for us also, that we might be saved. And now God has set Him on a greater throne than the throne of Israel in Jerusalem; He has set Him on His own throne in heaven. Yet, how few there are even now to do Him homage, as the wise men did. Dear children, if you would be “wise,” give honor to Jesus, who is both a great King and a Saviour.

H. R.

ML 05/06/1900

What Is There for You in that Verse?

A LITTLE boy, N. by name, living in the city of C., was accustomed when writing to his relatives, to add a verse or two of Scripture at the bottom of his letter, without saying anything as to why he had written them or what he saw in them for himself. He often tells of the Sunday school, his joy to hear of Jesus, and his great delight to read of Him in “Messages of Love.”

When writing to his brother, a short time ago, he as usual, placed a verse of Scripture at the end, and at this time it was: “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37.

When his brother asked him what he saw in that verse, his answer was: “By this verse, I know that I can come to Jesus and He will not cast me away.” And after he had written: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life,” (John 6:47) he said: “By this I know that I have everlasting life, because I believe on Jesus.”

I wonder how many of our little readers can, like N., say that they have everlasting life, because they believe on Jesus.

Do you believe on Jesus, that He died for you on the cross—for your sins? If so, He says that He will not cast you out, and that you have everlasting life. Can you not believe what Jesus, the Son of God, says; that One, who loves you and died to save you? Come to Jesus, tell Him you are a sinner, believe on Him, and eternal life is yours. Jesus says:

“Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matt. 11:28.

“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.” Matt. 24:35. W. S.

ML 05/06/1900

Only a Soap Bubble!

Oh! how pretty, just look at those beautiful colors, and how it floats in the air. Ah, it is gone! What was it? Only a soap-bubble, that was all; yet the little boy’s eyes followed it until it burst. He could not help looking at it, and when it was gone he had to make another, a n d another, till he was satisfied? Oh, no! till he was tired of it, and then he wanted something else.

Dear children, we may learn two lessons from this; one about our own hearts, and the other about all that this world gives.

We are never satisfied with anything that we ever get that belongs to this world; and all that is to be found in this world soon passes away.

But there is One I want to tell you about that will satisfy your heart, and will never pass away. I expect you know who I mean. It is the Lord Jesus, do you, know Him? If not, I trust you will know Him before you lay down this paper. You cannot have real happiness and joy until you know Jesus as your own Saviour.

And He is not only a Saviour for you, but He will be your unchanging Friend.

His love for you caused Him to come down from heaven to bear the punishment from God on account of your sins, (which you deserved to bear) so that you would never have to be punished, and He would be able to have you with Himself in glory forever.

He does not turn away from you and say: I don’t love you any more, like some of your friends, but He loves you all the time and gives you everything that you need.

Have you thanked Him for what He has done for you on that cross? Do you go to Him and ask Him for what you need, and do you thank Him for all that He gives to you?

Oh, dear children, there is no one who loves you as Jesus does, and if you have believed He died for you, He will never give you up. There is no friend like Jesus! J. T. A.

ML 05/13/1900

"It Is All Right with Me."

A FEW days after a young friend of mine had believed on Christ as her own Saviour, while at her work, she walked forward to the elevator shaft, and leaned over the rail to see if the cage was coming up. It had gone to the floor above, and was coming down, but she did not hear it for the noise of machinery around her. She drew her head back quickly, and just in time, for her head actually touched the floor of it. In another second she would have been killed.

A girl, who saw her narrow escape, spoke to her.

She answered: “It is all right with me, I am trusting Jesus,” and she told her companion of a tract which she had read just before her conversion, of a young man who had gone home anxious about his soul, after having heard the gospel preached. His mother could give him no real comfort; but before he slept that night, he went to his mother, and said: “It is all right now, Mother, I am trusting Jesus.”

It was well for him that he did so that night, for the next day was his last on earth.

Is it all right with you, dear reader? “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” Heb. 2:3.

A. F.

ML 05/13/1900

The Poor, Lame Boy.

“Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.” Jeremiah 23:24.

If the Lord will, I am going to have a talk with the dear children who read “Messages of Love,” about a poor, lame boy I saw some years ago on a railway train in Canada. He had come out, I believe, from England some time before I saw him, to work on a farm. But for some reason, his employer could not, or did not, keep him very long; so the boy started to return to his native land. Two dollars was, I think, all the money he had, and this would, of course, be nothing like enough to pay his fare to his home.

Sometime after I had boarded the train, I went to bed, and knew nothing of a disturbance that took place during the night, until in conversation with one of the passenger next morning, I was informed that a boy was lying in secret under one of the seats. It appears that this poor lame boy had got on the train during the night without a ticket. When the conductor came round, and found the boy with neither ticket nor money, except two dollars, he was displeased, and took all the boy’s money, and at the next station turned him off the train. Poor boy! I was told he cried and ‘did not know what to do. There he was, without money, and, so to speak, alone in the world. I fear, too, he did not know how or where to look to find Jesus, the “Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” Many of you, dear little ones, know Jesus as that Friend who died for you; you are never alone, and need not fear though anyone should take away all you have in the world, for Jesus is of more value than all the money in the world; and no one can take Him away from you, or take you away from Him. Read what He says in John 10:28. “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of MY hand,” and Heb. 13:5. “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

Some of the passengers felt for this poor cast-away boy, and were determined to get him on the train again. They did so, and kept him in secret under one of the seats. But though the conductor came in and did not see him, there was One who saw him quite as plainly under the seat as anywhere else. Do you know who that was? God saw him; and He sees you too, dear children, wherever you go, whatever you do. You cannot hide from Him. Well, as time went on, this boy needed some food: so one or more of these passengers fed him under the seat. When food was put down, a hand could be seen reaching it and drawing it away where it could be eaten in secret. But God saw it all. As fresh passengers came on the train they soon saw that someone was being hidden from the conductor, and they only smiled at man’s success. But man could not hide this boy from God. Where can you hide so that He cannot see you?

After a while the train stopped at a station where it waited a long time. The passengers walked about, and this poor boy was among them. I think he went to the office and asked for pity to be taken on him, but could get none as he desired. My heart longed to get him alone, so that I could talk to him about Jesus; but there seemed no way for this. I was almost ready to cry for him. At length the time arrived for the train to start again. The passengers succeeded in getting him on the car and putting him under the seat out of the conductor’s sight again but not out of God’s sight. After a while they made a collection for him, obtaining, I think, two dollars. Before I left the train I felt it in my heart to try and reach him; so as there was no way open to talk with him, I wrote a letter, directing him to Jesus. Then I took my pocket Bible, and an orange, and a little beef, and passed all to him under the seat. I know not what became of him after this, for I had soon to leave the train. But I think God would not allow His word to be put into that boy’s hands in so remarkable a manner without blessing to his soul, for He says, His word shall not return to Him void.

Now, dear children, let me tell you that you cannot hide yourselves, nor be hidden, by any man, woman or child, from God. Wherever you go, whatever you do, God sees you. You may do some sin, such as tell a lie, or steal, or say something naughty and angry, or you may sin in other ways, and then say “No, I did not.” God knows you did, for He saw you and heard you, for God sees in the dark, and hears whispers. And if you have done only one sin, that is enough to keep you out of heaven. One sin was the cause of Adam and Eve being driven out of Eden. You may hide from your parents, but you cannot hide from God. He sees under the seat and under the bed; yes, and He sees right inside your heart, and knows all that is there. I once asked an Indian child, “Did God ever hear you tell a lie?” “Yes” was the answer, and I expect that was the truth. It is better to be open and confess, rather than deny what you know to be true. God says, “Only acknowledge thine iniquity.” The prodigal son said, “I have sinned against heaven and before Thee.” That is what God wants you to do, to tell it all to Him, and He is ready to pardon. God’s pardon is ready because Jesus has died, “The just for the unjust.” There could have been no pardon if Jesus had not died; but the moment you confess to God, that moment you are pardoned. Let the blood of God’s Lamb be applied to your heart by the Holy Spirit, and you will be clean and fit for God’s presence. Then, when Jesus comes, you will not be left behind with those who will, at His coming in judgment, call on the hills and rocks to cover them and hide them from His wrath.

If the Lord will, perhaps I may write you again in connection with something else about the poor, lame boy. J. R.

ML 05/13/1900

The Babe and King Herod.

WHEN the wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, and enquired about the young King that had been born, it came to the ears of Herod, who was then ruling over the Jews, and Herod was greatly “troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” That which was good news to the shepherds, and Simeon, and Anna, and the wise men of the East, was no good news to Herod and the great men in Jerusalem. They were all troubled. Herod was a wicked man, and most of the great people in Jerusalem, though very religious, had no love for God, and now when God’s King was born they were all afraid.

And what did Herod do? Well, he gathered the chief priests and the scribes together, and asked where Christ should be born. These men, though their hearts may have been far from God, knew the Scriptures, and they showed King. Herod that Christ was to be born in Bethlehem of Judea, according to the fifth chapter and second verse of Micah.

Then Herod secretly called the wise men of the East, and enquired when the star appeared, and then sent them to Bethlehem to search for the Child, and then bring him word, pretending that he, too, desired to worship the young King. But Herod had no love for God, nor for the young King God had sent. He thought if this Child became the King in Israel, he and his heirs could no longer reign there, and so instead of worshipping the Child, he purposed to kill Him. He did not tell this to the wise men, nor, perhaps, to anybody. No, he tried to deceive them by saying he wanted to worship Him. But he could not deceive God. God who searches the heart, knew what was in the heart of this wicked king, and God would take care of His Son, the young King which had just been born: So He warned the wise men, in a dream, not to return to Herod; and they returned to their on country another way.

Now God knew what Herod purposed to do, and He also sent His Angel to Joseph in a dream, telling him to arise, and take the young Child and His mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till he received word again. So Joseph took the Child and His mother, and hurried away to Egypt in the night, to escape from. Herod; and he remained in Egypt till Herod died.

Herod was very angry because the wise men did not return, and bring him word of the Child. So he sent and killed all the children that were under two years old, in Bethlehem, and round about, so as to make sure to kill Jesus the young King. Thus he became a cruel murderer, causing “lamentation and weeping, and great mourning” among the mothers and fathers and friends of the little children he killed without cause. He would have murdered God’s Son, too, if he could, but God knew all about it, and took His Son out of the way. Poor, foolish, wicked Herod! what folly it was to try to frustrate God’s plans! He could not do it, and though he tried to do so, he only committed deeds that will fill him with awful remorse in the lake of fire.

In due time God saw to it that His Son was called out of Egypt, and brought into the land of Israel. They returned and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, and so Jesus grew up there, and was called a Nazarene. A. H. R.

ML 05/13/1900

The First Step.

WITH what delight we look upon the little baby brother or sister, who is taking the first step, and all like to catch up the little darling and kiss him, and then encourage him to take another step and another, until he is able to walk. So we say “the first step leads to another,” whether it is the first step in walking; the first step in doing what the Lord wants us to do; or the first step in sin.

Now I want to tell you about two little boys, and one of them was enticed to take a step in disobedience, and then I want to tell you of the first step the Lord wants you to take.

A lady while walking along the street, noticed two boys coming towards her, and as they were passing, one said to the other: “Mother told me I could only go a little way with you. I have already gone further than I should.”

“Oh,” said his companion, “come along. We would have been there by this time, if we had walked faster.”

That lady’s joy in seeing the little boy wanting to do what his mother told him, was turned to sadness to see how he was being persuaded to leave the path of obedience, and to disregard his mother’s wishes.

At once she thought of that word in Prov. 1:10. “My son if sinners entice thee consent thou not.” The little boy yielded to the temptation, regardless of his mother’s words and on they went together. That might seem to some of you, not to be a very bad thing, but remember, dear children, that just such a step will lead you to take another that is worse. Beware of those who would lead you to spurn your mother’s words, and remember, that those who will try to pursuade you to go contrary to her wishes, will lead you into all kinds of sin. So, dear children, do not take the first step, and if you have already done so, don’t take another step in such a path.

Now do you ask what is the first step the Lord wants us to take? It is to come to Him about all our sins, for He is the only One who is able to put them all away; for He died for sinners in order that our sins could be forever removed, so God can say: “Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Heb. 10:17. Have you come to Jesus and known Him as your Saviour, as the One who has put all your sins away? If so, that is the first step; the next step is, to go to Him about all that happens to you and He will guide you. “In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.” Prov. 3:6.

J. T. A.

ML 05/20/1900

"Look unto Me and Be Ye Saved."

IT is with the Lord to “save by few or by many:” to open in a moment blind eyes, and turn souls from the power of Satan unto God; or, through slower processes, to lead to self-emptying and filling with Christ. But if ever forgiveness of sins is known, it is through faith in Christ, who alone is “the way.”

Mrs. W. had been brought up in a religious way, but she did not know the saving power of the truth, and although groping in darkness, she had little desire for the light. She had read the Scriptures, but they had not found entrance to her heart.

One evening a desire came over her to read for a time in her Bible. She took it and opened it, and this beautiful verse was before her eyes: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk, without money and without price.” Isa. 55:1. She read it and her attention was riveted. She read it again and again. Here was God’s priceless gift, without money and without price. And here was the invitation to come and receive it. As she thought over it she felt her need and she saw the fullness of God’s grace in making provision for such an one as she; the words sank down deep into her soul. The Spirit of God had carried the word home. Long she sat and meditated on those precious words which had brought her into a new life, and drank in of their fulness. At last she went to speak to her husband and tell him of the joy that had come to her, but he was sound asleep and did not hear what she said to him, so she contented herself to wait. Her heart was full, and she went here and there, as she had opportunity, to those she knew to be God’s children, to tell them the good news, and they rejoiced with her in her new-found happiness.

After this she had much to learn about herself, and the badness of her own heart, but she had learned that “the blood of Jesus Christ, His son. cleanseth us from all sin,” and so was kept rejoicing in Him.

Have my dear little readers come to Jesus? Do you, dear children, know that wonderful salvation which is without money and without price to you, if only you will receive it; but which was at such great, such infinite cost to the One who purchased it, that He might give it to you?

Come! You need no money. Come now, and accept God’s wonderful gift, which is freely offered you. “The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Rom. 6:23. R.

ML 05/20/1900

Just as I Am.

An Indian and a white man were, through the same sermon, made to feel the heavy weight of their sins. The Indian was soon afterwards able to rejoice in pardoning mercy through the knowledge that the precious blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, had cleansed him from all sin. But the white man for a long while was in great distress of mind, and at times ready to despair, until, at last, he saw that Christ died, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, and believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, he too was saved, and able to rejoice in God’s pardoning love and grace. A short time afterwards, meeting his red brother, he thus addressed him; “How is it that I should be so long in doubt and despair, and you find comfort so soon?” “O! brother,” replied the Indian, “me tell you, there come along a rich prince, he propose to give you a new coat, you look at your coat and say, ‘I think it will do a little longer.’ He then offer me coat, I look at my old blanket, I say, ‘This good for nothing, I fling it right away and accept the beautiful garment.’

Just so, brother, you try to keep your own righteousness long time, you sorry to give it up, but me poor Indian had none, so I gladly receive the righteousness of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“For by grace are ye saved, through faith: and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works lest any man should boast.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Eph. 2:8, 9, 10.

R. R.

ML 05/20/1900

The Babe Become a Youth.

FROM the time that the Babe was brought back out of Egypt, until He was twelve years old, we have no account of His life. He seems to have remained with His parents in quietness at Nazareth, with nothing transpiring that the Holy Ghost has seen fit to record for our learning. When He was twelve years old there was an occurrence at Jerusalem, full of interest, which is brought before us in the divine record, and then again there is silence till He was about thirty years of age, the time that He was baptized of John, and entered upon His public ministry. All these years are passed over in silence. He seems to have remained with His parents, in the quiet of His Nazareth home, subject to His parents, and perhaps working with His supposed father, Joseph, who was a carpenter. In Mark 6:3, the people ask, “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?” which would indicate that He had worked at that trade. But it was the people who thus spoke, and Scripture does not tell us whether they were correct or not. But the Holy Ghost has told us what occurred when He was twelve years old, and from this we may learn something for our profit.

While He resided at Nazareth, we are told in general that, “the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.” Luke 2:40. From a babe, He grew to be a youth, and His spirit kept pace with His body, for He “waxed strong in spirit.” And whatever else He may have done, in the way of work, His mind was being filled with a divine store of wisdom, and the favor of God rested on Him. The evidence of this is now given:

“And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem, after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and His mother knew not of it. But they, supposing Him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought Him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And when they found Him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking Him. And it came to pass that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. And all that heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.”

This shows that during all those quiet years of His youth, He had been in communion with His Father, and had been daily gathering divine wisdom and understanding. Joseph and His mother were “amazed,” when they saw Him; and His mother, perhaps somewhat out of patience because of the trouble they had experienced, rebuked Him, saying, “Son why hast Thou thus dealt with us? behold, Thy father and I have sought Thee sorrowing.” His answer shows that He had been in closer communion with God, His Father, than they had been. Yes, His communion was perfect. “How is it, that ye sought Me? Wist ye not that I must be about My Father’s business? And they understood not the saying which He spake unto them.” They ought to have known this, but their knowledge of the thoughts of God as to this marvelous Child had not kept pace with His. The learned doctors, too, saw that this was no ordinary child, but One from whom they, with all their wisdom, might still learn. “All that heard Him were astonished at His understanding.” Wondrous Child!

But, while He must be about His Father’s business, He would also be subject to His parents, according to the will of God. “He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them.” This is indeed beautiful. Sometimes boys and girls think they have learned to know more than their parents, and think they will do as they please. Jesus did not do so. He did in deed know more than His parents when He was twelve years old, but He was subject to them, even though He knew more than they. And He thus sets a beautiful example for children to follow now. In this beautiful path also, He “increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” It was a lovely life unfolding its beautiful fragrance before God and before man, and increasingly so as He grew up to manhood. Blessed Babe of Bethlehem, Christ the Lord, the Saviour of men!

A. H. R.

Soon Christ the Lord shall come

For all who love His name,

And then return as King of kings,

O’er all the earth to reign.

Jesus Himself shall rule,

The world receive His word,

And all creation own His sway—

The Universal Lord.

ML 05/20/1900

Pleasures.

A family of children who live in a city, had been making preparations for some time, to spend a day in the park. Notes were written to several of their friends, inviting them to join their company. When the morning of the appointed day arrived, they all arose with bright and happy faces; and hands and brains, from the oldest to the youngest, were busily engaged in arranging the dinner in baskets, and getting together various games they wished to take along, with which to amuse themselves.

As soon as everything was ready, they all started off for the street car, delighted at the prospect of a whole day to run and romp, laugh and tumble as much as they wished on the beautiful green grass. Just after reaching the park, some of the company noticed a dark cloud rising in the southwest, and almost before they were aware of it, the whole sky was covered with dark, threatening clouds. Soon it began to rain very hard, and the dear children, who had but a few moments before, set their baskets and bundles down; unpacked their games, and hung their hats on the bushes close by, had to quickly gather everything together, and run to the car, through the torrents of rain which were now falling.

By the time they reached the car, they were dripping wet. Such a disappointed lot of children! The good time they had looked forward to for such a long time, was changed to sadness and disappointment.

So it is, and will always be, dear children, with pleasures in this world. They appear great in anticipation, and while they last; but disappointment is sure to follow.

We all seek for pleasures, but which shall they be; pleasures that only last for a short time and are soon gone? Or pleasures that are not only for the present time, but will last forever?

Moses chose “rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt.” Heb. 11:24-26.

This world can give pleasures which last only for a season, and end in disappointment.

I trust that our young friends will seek for pleasures that last forever. Do you ask, Where are they to be found? I will tell you:

“In Thy presence is fullness of soy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Ps. 16:11.

All lasting pleasures are to be found

in Christ. A.

ML 05/27/1900

Animals of the Bible.

THE LAMB.

DEAR Children. —Again we come to an animal that is used in Scripture as a type of Christ. The lamb is a gentle, harmless creature, does not defend itself—fitting type of Him who was “brought as a lamb to the slaughter.” Isa. 53:7.

We cannot look at all the Scriptures concerning this animal, but we will look at a few of them. In Gen. 4, we find Abel, the second little boy ever born in this world, was a keeper of sheep, and he brought of the firstlings of his flock, an offering unto the Lord. The very best of his lambs were used in the sacrifice, and the Lord accepted his offering. In Heb. 11, we read, “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain” who brought of the fruit of the ground. But Abel caused a lamb to shed its blood and lay down its life, thus owning himself a sinner, deserving death, and with the finger of faith pointing down through the centuries to Christ, the spotless Lamb of God, who should shed His blood for the remission of sins, and lay down His life for His own people.

I am reminded of a story of a lamb, which I will tell you. A man was standing on a high scaffold working on a building; when stepping back, too near the edge, he fell to the ground, and would no doubt have been killed, had he not fallen on a lamb which was eating grass in front of the house, as he fell. His fall killed the lamb, but his own life was spared. The thought that the lamb had given up its life for his, touched him so deeply that he had its image placed over his door, with some such motto as this: “The lamb died for me.” Well, dear children, how much more grateful we should be to Jesus, the Lamb of God, who died for us, not merely to save us from a natural death, but from the “lake of fire,” which is the “second death.” Rev. 20:14.

In Gen. 22, we read that when God would try Abraham, He told him to offer up his only son Isaac for a burnt offering. As they went together to the place of which God had told him—Abraham carrying the fire and the knife, and Isaac the wood—he said “My father . . . . behold the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” “Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” And so He did; staying Abraham’s hand from killing his son and giving a substitute. But He who spared Abraham’s son, “spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all.” Rom. 8:32. Yes, Jesus! God’s only, begotten and beloved Son is the Lamb of God’s providing. He is the Substitute for His people. The One who suffered death in our stead. Is that hard to understand or believe? I have read a true story of a little girl only three years old, who, when giving thanks for what she had received said: “And I thank you, O, Jesus, that you was punished astead (instead) of me.” E. G. B.

ML 05/27/1900

Victor Doyle.

THE little boy about whom I am going to speak to you, was eleven years of age, but was very small. His father died when he was about eight years old, and since then he had been brought up by a bad, drunken stepmother. She was very unkind to little Victor, scarcely giving him any food to eat; and in winter he had to go with his bare feet.

The way Victor lived was this: He went out every morning with a bag over his shoulder, and searched about for scraps of any kind—bread, cloth, nails, old iron, or anything, in short, he could lay his hand upon honestly, for Victor was an honest boy. At night, on his return from his day’s labors, he would carefully separate the things which he had gathered, and sell them for what he could get. The little he thus made, paid the rent of the wretched hovel in which he dwelt.

Victor had learned to read while his father was alive, and had never forgotten the lessons he received then. He would carefully gather up every scrap of printed paper he could find, and thus kept up, as best he could, his reading.

One day he found, amongst the rubbish he had collected, a leaf of a hymn book. It was crushed, dirty and torn, but nevertheless poor little Victor managed to make it out. It was a few lines of poetry, and ran thus:—

“Christ is merciful and mild,

He was once a little child;

He, whom heavenly hosts adore,

Lived on earth, despised and poor.

Then He laid His glory by,

When He came for us to die;

How I wonder when I see

His unbounded love for me.”

“Ah,” said Victor, “I know; I heard about Christ at the Mission School last Sunday. I wonder if He got poor on purpose? That’s very strange! I wish I could get rich. ‘Came for us to die!’ Can that be true? Who did He die for? For the folks that made this little book, perhaps, but not for me. ‘He was once a little child!’ I wonder if He was as big as I am, and had enough to eat?”

Victor read the sweet little verse of the hymn over and over again. Then he carefully laid it aside, saying; “I’ll learn that verse to say, as the boys did last Sunday; and I’ll ask the teacher more about Christ, and who did He die for; and if He is alive anywhere now, so that I can go and see Him.”

Yes, Victor, Jesus is alive, and you may go and see Him He welcomes such as you. Although in glory, His heart and love are unchanged. His love, oh, His love, it is too deep to fathom! too vast to scan! He died on Calvary’s cross for sinners. He bled, agonized and died; but now He is risen from the dead, and Victor’s wish to know “if He is alive anywhere now, so that I can go and see Him,” can easily be answered. He is “alive,” and any of my young friends “may go and see Him.”

The next time that the poor boy went to the Mission School, he heard all about Jesus and His love. He was told that Jesus was “alive” in glory, and that he might “go and see Him.” He was told that Jesus was wanting him, and that there was One in heaven who loved him, if no one else did. The poor desolate boy found a Saviour and a Friend in the Lord Jesus Christ, all through his life.

My dear young readers, you have heard a little of Victor Doyle, and how that poor boy got to know and love the Saviour; first, Victor knew that Jesus loved and died for him; second, he then gave his love and heart to Jesus.

“We love Him because He first loved us.”

Have you believed on Jesus?

—Selected.

ML 05/27/1900

A Mistake.

A LITTLE girl said to her grandmother: “Do you think Jesus would love me, Grandmother?”

“Yes, if you are good,” she replied. A visitor turned to the grandmother and said: “Does Jesus love you?”

“Oh, yes,” replied the grandmother. “And are you good?” asked the visitor.

“Oh, no,” said she, “I am only a poor sinner.”

The Bible says: “There is none good, but One, that is God.” Mark 10:18.

“God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Rom. 5:8. A. F.

ML 05/27/1900

Bible Questions for June.

Give chapter and verse from John’s gospel, of each of the scriptures quoted below, also the one composed of the words in the capital letters.

1. “AND these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor Me.’.

2. “Then SAID Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.”

3.“And said HAIL, King of the Jews!”

4.“Pilate saith unto them, shall I crucify your KING?”

5.“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will OF Him that sent Me, and to finish His work.”

6.“Behold THE Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

7.“Then said Jesus to those JEWS which believed on Him, If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed.”

8.“AND He must needs go through Samaria.”

9.“Then cried THEY all again, saying, Not this Man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber.”

10.“And they SMOTE Him with their hands.”

11.“All things were made by HIM.”

12.“When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth WITH His disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a garden, into the which He entered, and His disciples.”

13.“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because THEIR deeds were evil.”

14.“Then saith He to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my, HANDS.”

Answers to questions of April 1St.

1. Mark 8:36.

2. 14:9.

3. 15:8.

4. 14:27

5. 11:24.

6. 12:28.

“He hath done all things well.” Mark 8:27.

ML 06/03/1900

"No Dark Valley for Me."

“READ to me,” said a dear one a few nights before his departure. We read together the pilgrim’s Psalm. (23rd.) The 4th verse took his attention. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me.” I said, “We are in the valley now, but you are almost out of it. The valley is this world, a vale of tears, but He is with us all the way. There is no dark valley for you now. You are just passing out of this dark room into a brighter one. ‘Absent from the body, present with the Lord,’ no valley between.” He said to his wife standing by, “Is not that nice! I will be holding your hand one minute and the next be with the Lord.” And to some of his friends afterwards he said, “There is no dark valley for me. You are in it but I am almost out of it. And Jesus is with me.”

To the child of God, death is now the Lord’s servant to put His people to rest.

“Put to sleep by Jesus.” The child of God may say, “To me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Phil. 1:21.

A. F.

ML 06/03/1900

Ragged Charlie.

ONE cold day in dark and gloomy December, when it was much more pleasant to stay indoors than go out into the streets, and when persons whose business or occupation compelled them to leave their homes, were careful to wrap themselves in warm garments to keep out the cold, Mr. Shepherd, a Glasgow merchant and a decided Christian, having to attend a meeting in town, buttoned up his overcoat, started off on an errand of love and mercy.

Having turned a corner where the lofty buildings afforded shelter from the fierce wind then blowing, his keen eye caught sight of a poor ragged boy huddled up in an angle of the wall, trying to escape from the biting blast; and pitying the poor ragged boy, asked him why he did not run home.

“Home,” ejaculated Charlie, “I have no home.”

“Where is your father!”

“Oh, I do not know; I never saw him; he went away before I was born?”

“Have you no mother either?”

“Yes, I have a kind, good mother. She used to take care of me, wrap me up in her warm shawl, kiss me, fold me in her arms and say how fondly she loved me; but those happy days are gone now. She worked for me as long as she was able, but then she was taken sick, and could not work any longer. Someone sent her to the hospital. I can only see her once a week; she looks so pale and sorrowful, and that makes me feel very miserable. I wish I was a man, then I could work for her, get bread and clothes, and a house to live in, and get mother home from the hospital again, so that I could see her every day.”

“Poor boy! If I give you my card, and tell you how to go, do you think you could find my house?”

Charlie said he would try. Mr. Shepherd then gave him his card, instructed him how to find his home, told him to ring the door bell, and hand the card to the servant who opened it, when he would be asked in and get some food to eat: he was also told to stay until Mr. Shepherd returned home. Charlie was so delighted that a good, kind gentleman had spoken to him, and asked him to go where he was to get something to eat, that he set off, defying the cold. He soon turned the corner, ran to the end of a very long road, crossed a bridge, and there he saw the fine house to which he had been directed.

Charlie looked at the beautiful mansion, and then at his own tattered garments. He quite lost sight of the fact that he had been commanded to go boldly to the door and ring the bell, by the owner of the house, and feared that if he went they would call him, as he had often been called before, a ragged urchin, and tell him to go away. “I will wait till the gentleman comes himself,” said Charlie. He was soon cold, hungry and miserable again; but he dared not go to the door. After waiting a long time, Mr. Shepherd did come at last, but Charlie was now ashamed to be seen, as he had not done what he was asked to do.

He hid himself behind a tree till Mr. Shepherd had passed into the house; he would have run away, only he had no home to, go to, and he did not know what to do. Mr. Shepherd inquired for Charlie as soon as he got home, and was quite surprised to hear that no poor boy had called at the house; but the servant said he had noticed a ragged boy near the house some time ago. The servant was then sent out to seek Charlie, and found him, as Mr. Shepherd had first noticed him,—shivering with cold. He was now quite willing to go in with the servant—it was only the fear of being turned away that prevented him from ringing at first. When brought into the house, Mr. Shepherd said; “What a foolish boy you are. I asked you to ring at the door; had you done this, you would have been warmed and fed by now. You did not believe me.”

“Oh, yes,” said Charlie, “I did, but I was afraid.”

Mr. Shepherd rang a bell for a servant.

Charlie had as much bread, roast beef, and plum pudding as he could eat, and was then seated by the fire to warm himself, while Mr. Shepherd talked to him.

“Charlie,” said Mr. Shepherd, “have you been wondering why I asked you to my house?”

“Yes,” Charlie replied, “nobody has ever been so good to me, except my mother.”

“Well, let me tell you now that it was the affection that you manifested for your poor sick mother that awakened in me a concern for you and her. I mean to help you both if I can, but I must know you better before I can tell what I am to do. You need a warm bath, and clothes to keep out the cold; and we will see about more important concerns after. Charlie, have you ever been taught about God, and Jesus, the Son of God, the Saviour of sinners?”

Charlie said his mother had often taught him and prayed with him; but he thought God was far away in heaven, and we could not know much about Him till we died.

Mr. Shepherd tried to show him that God is near us always, and hears us when we pray, and answers us too, if we only believe Him; “but your conduct today reminds me forcibly of the way many persons treat the offer of God’s mercy. I asked you to ring at my door, but instead of doing so, you looked at your clothes and thought you were not fit to come in. God offers salvation to all who believe in Jesus; but many do not receive it, they look at their unfitness, instead of taking God at His word; and His word says to every poor sinner, both young and old, rich and poor, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.’”

Selected.

ML 06/03/1900

The First Lesson.

I WOULD like, dear children, for you to write a little verse. It may not be your first lesson in writing, but it is one of the first lessons you need to learn. It is;

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Prov. 9:10.

If you fear the Lord and remember that He sees you at all times and knows the very thoughts of your hearts, it will keep you from doing things that are wrong and save you from many sorrows.

Then, it is true wisdom to obey God’s word.

Some little boys and girls think it is quite big to disobey their parents, but that is because they are not wise, for God says: “Children obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.” Col. 3:20.

They think that if Papa or Mamma does not see them, or if there is no one around to tell what they have been doing, then it will be all right with them, but such actions will at some time end in sorrow.

So, dear children, fear the Lord; remember He is always looking at you, and if you do what is wrong, you have sinned against Him; go to Him and tell Him about it.

“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Prov. 28:13. J. T. A.

ML 06/03/1900

Christ.

A POOR boy, who is not blessed with the full use of his mind, was asked; “What would you tell a poor sinner who wanted to know the way to be saved?” He answered with just, one word, “Christ.” Surely this poor feebleminded boy had been taught by God’s Holy Spirit that Jesus said, “I am the Way.” John 14:5. E. G. B.

ML 06/03/1900

A Mother's Love.

IS it not a pretty sight to see a dear little baby lying in his mother’s arms!

We often see it and have, no doubt, noticed by the expression of the mother’s face, how much she loves her baby; but if we look at him, we see, not so much an expression of love, as, a picture of helplessness.

The little one cannot do anything for himself but the mother must do everything for him; first, because she loves her little baby; second, he is not strong enough to take care of himself.

This reminds us of the love that God has shown to us, for the Bible says: “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10.

This is beyond a mother’s love for her baby.

Have you ever thought that God really loves you so much that He sent His Son to die for you, so that you may be saved through Him? And He loved us when we were helpless and could not do anything for ourselves in order to be saved. He looked upon us in love, and knew our helplessness, so He did everything for us.

“When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Rom. 5:6.

J. T. A.

ML 06/10/1900

"A Still, Small Voice."

Mr. R. had godly parents who had instructed him in the truth, but these instructions had reached his mind only and not his heart. He had many times had the way of salvation pointed out to him, but there was no beauty in Jesus that he should desire Him. Jesus was nothing to him.

Earnestly and repeatedly did friends remonstrate with him, but all to no avail. Indifference—cold, heartless indifference seemed to characterize him and envelop him as a cloak.

Years passed on, but there was no change in him. A cyclone passed through the country, where he lived. Houses on either side of his were partially blown down, but Mr. R’s house escaped with very little damage and no loss of life, while dead and dying were on both sides of him, and he employed in waiting on them. Anxious friends thought, surely God will speak to him through this. For the “great and strong wind” had wrought sad havoc. But no! for him, “The Lord was not in the wind.” The same dreadful indifference still wrapped him about. Other trials came but they brought no change to this one who was encased in an armor which it seemed nothing would pierce.

One Sunday afternoon he went with some of his children to attend a Sunday school about a mile away. That afternoon, the person who was in charge of the school brought out some very wrong teaching. He maintained that a person may be in Christ and yet sin and be lost. Mr. R., who was familiar with the letter of Scripture, could not sit still, under such teaching as that and have his own and other children so wrongly informed; so he arose and stated clearly the imperishable character of the life which the believer has; and the security of the sheep that is held in the Shepherd’s hand, pointing out scripture to uphold these statements. This led to quite a discussion and it was much later than usual when the school was dismissed.

The children went on to their homes, but those who were specially interested still lingered to talk these questions over more fully, and when finally they separated, it was growing dark. Mr. R. was hurrying home to attend to his evening work, and on the way crossed a large field to save some steps. When about the middle of the field he was arrested by the thought that these precious truths which he had been bringing before others, were not for him, for he was unsaved.

One who was held in the hand of Jesus could never be plucked out, but he was not held in that blessed hand; one, who had everlasting life, could never perish, but he did not have this wonderful life. Jesus, whose love and whose mercy are so great, was not his Saviour. Ah! it was now the voice of the Lord to his soul. The “still, small voice” had reached him. Conscience stricken, he fell upon his knees on the grass and besought the Lord for mercy. When he arose he was a saved man, and went on his way rejoicing.

Do you not think, dear children, that the Lord was very gracious in bearing so long with one who was utterly indifferent to Him, and finally bringing him in this strange way to Himself?

Let us praise Him for His goodness, for He is “wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working.”

ML 06/10/1900

"Eternity."

Count the little drops of water

That within the ocean lie;

Count the many stars that twinkle,

As you look into the sky;

Count the sands within the desert,

And upon the ocean shore;

Count the moments of your life-time

Gone, but to return no more.

Count the leaves within the forest,

And the tiny flakes of snow;

Count the blades of grass in summer,

And the shining drops of dew.

Count the tears of all the millions

In so many lands have shed;

Count the stones in all the graveyards

Telling where they’ve placed the dead.

Count the birds that soar above us,

And the atoms in the air;

Count the many, many blossoms

Giving fragrance everywhere.

When your counting all is done—

ETERNITY has scarce begun.

Children, say! where will you be

During all ETERNITY?

E. B. H.

ML 06/10/1900

A Warning.

A YOUNG man attending the meetings seemed anxious about his soul. I had just trusted Christ as my Saviour. He said to me, “I would do anything, or go anywhere, if I could only get salvation.” I knew enough to say, “You will not get it by ‘doing,’ or any efforts of your own. You must just trust the Lord and believe His word.”

The next time I saw him, he was the same. I warned him of the danger of putting away his convictions, and sometime after he told me, “I am not anxious now.” Soon he plunged into the intoxicating pleasures of a worldly life.

Another companion at the same school, went off to sea. I could not say he had ever decided for Christ. The ship was wrecked; he and two more got into a small boat. When they were picked up, he was on his knees, his hands clasped as if in prayer, and he was dead.

I say to you, my dear little friends, Do not put off your salvation.

“Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 11 Cor. 6:2.

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” Heb. 2:3. A. F.

ML 06/10/1900

The Happy Cripple.

IT was at the dawn of a beautiful Sunday morning in the month of June, that a child’s little wagon might have been seen near the town of N., in which a small boy sat, whose frail body was pillowed up as softly as possible with cushions. His pale cheeks spoke of long years of suffering. With apparent deep interest his eyes were fixed on the beautiful flowers in the green meadows nearby, while at the same time his ear seemed intent on listening to the melody of the birds that were warbling their morning songs in the leafy branches of the trees.

What can be the matter with the boy, and where does he live? thought a lady who was walking along the same way; and turning to the woman who was drawing the little wagon, she inquired:

“Is that your own child, my good woman? The poor boy seems very ill, and yet he has such a bright, happy look.”

“My Jacob is a poor cripple,” answered the woman; “he can neither get around nor play like other children; but he is very happy, especially when I take him out in this way in the morning, before I go to my day’s work. The rest of the time he has to spend all alone at home.”

“You look tired, my good woman,” continued the lady, in a friendly tone; “let us sit down under the shade of that tree for a little while. I would like so much to hear something of the history of your poor little invalid; how old is he?”

“He is ten years old,” was the answer.

“And has he always been as he is now?” asked the lady.

“Oh, no,” replied the mother, as tears filled her eyes; “he used to be a fine healthy child. But you see, Madam, the poor boy was only nine months old when his father died. Then urgent need compelled me, from that time on, to leave him to the care of his ten-year-old sister. One day while I was out working, the sister let her little brother fall. Several months he lay very ill from the results of that fall; and I thought I should lose him. I was too poor to precure for him all the attendance and medicine he needed. The Lord, however heard and answered my prayers and graciously spared him to me.”

“But the child must be quite a burden to you with all your cares,” suggested the lady.

“No, indeed. The boy is my highest delight; my greatest joy here on earth. Every morning, before I go to my day’s work, I lay everything he needs through the day, on a table close by him; and when my daughter and I return home tired out with our day’s work, we always see his pale, gentle face looking out for us at our little window. He sings out for joy whenever he sees us coming; and then I forget all my weariness, and can praise the Lord from the depth of my heart for the joy He has given me in my boy. In the morning I rise an hour earlier, on purpose to take my dear one out for a ride in the open air. It does him so much good; and these are the most precious moments of my life.”

With growing interest the lady gazed on the poor little cripple. He lay there so restful and contented in his carriage, as if he were the happiest child in the world. He appeared to be buried in thought, and seemed as though he had not heard a word of all the conversation between the lady and his mother. When the latter, however, put the question to him, if the loneliness at his home, through the day, was irksome to him, he replied with a bright smile; “Oh, no, I never feel lonely. I’m always quite happy. The Lord Jesus is so good to me; and I thank Him every day for giving me such a dear mother, and such a kind, good sister. I read a good deal in the Bible, and sometimes some little books Louise has brought me; then every Wednesday and Saturday a few boys come and read some pretty stories to me. I have also, in our little window, a rose-bush, you never saw a prettier one, perhaps; it blooms every month. The first rose, I give to my mother, the second, to my sister, and the others to my little friends, for I have nothing else to give. If you will only come and see us, I will give you one, too.”

“That would be a great pleasure to me,” said the lady in the most friendly tone, “I will come tomorrow, and see you, and your pretty rose-bush.”

She cast one more look at the poor but happy boy, pressed the mother’s hand warmly, and bade them farewell for that day.

“The Saviour, Jesus, is gone to prepare,

Such a beautiful home in the sky,

And He says He will come,

And take to that home,

Every sinner that’s born from on high.”

ML 06/10/1900

Summer

HOW beautiful is summer, so full of happy life! The woods are alive with leaves, birds, butterflies, squirrels, rabbits and foxes; the grass is full of crickets, moles, caterpillars, spiders and all sorts of beautiful bugs; the cows under the trees drink of the refreshing stream; children rejoice that school is over and they can get out of the cities and enjoy the beautiful scene.

There are many lessons, dear children, we may learn from this, but there is one I would specially like to bring before us. In Job 12:7-9 we read, “Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these, that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?” Yes, they can teach us that God has made them, so wonderful are they; yea more, that God feeds them, and they show that God’s goodness is over all. But while God’s goodness and power, as a creator, may easily be seen in all these things, yet God’s wonderful love has to be learned through another source. Where is it that God’s love is to be seen, or is told to us so fully? No doubt some of you can answer it right away. It was at the cross where God gave His only begotten Son to die in the place of sinners, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Yes, there is where God’s wonderful love has been shown to us. So we may, as we look at the beautiful creation, fear God, and give glory to Him and worship Him who made heaven and earth and the sea and the fountains of waters. But how much more reason there is that we should give praise and thanksgiving to God, as we think of the love in giving His Son for us. Dear children, may you not enjoy the beautiful summer without remembering that God gave us all these things, and constantly bear in mind that the Lord Jesus died for us in this very world.

J. T. A.

ML 06/17/1900

Animals of the Bible

THE LAMB.

We get another beautiful picture of the lamb as a type of Christ in the Passover lamb of Ex. 12. God’s dear earthly people were in cruel bondage to Pharaoh, King of Egypt, and God had sent His servant, Moses, to deliver them. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he refused to let the people go. God sent nine terrible plagues upon him and his people, of which you may read in Ex. 7, 8, 9 and 10. Still he refused, so the Lord said, “Yet will I bring one more plague upon Pharoah, and upon Egypt, afterwards he will let you go hence.” 11:1. And this was to be the plague: “All the first born in the land of Egypt shall die, from the first born of Pharaoh even unto the first horn of the maid servant and there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it anymore.” 11:5,6. Now the Lord did not intend that this plague should fall upon his own people, the children of Israel, so He told Moses what they were to do in order that they might escape. We find it in Ex. 12:3-13. “They shall take every man a lamb without blemish, a male of the first year; and the whole congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts, and on the upper door post of the houses, for I will pass through the land of Egypt this night and will smite all the first born in the land of Egypt, and the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.”

Here again we see a substitute. Had not the lamb died, the first born must have been slain on that night of judgment. But we see more here. While God’s eye was resting on the blood outside the door, what were those within doing? Feasting on the lamb whose blood sheltered them. Yes, the same lamb roast with fire, was their food. And now I want to ask you dear children do you see Jesus in all this? For all my desire is to point you to Him. Jesus is the One who shed His precious blood to make an atonement for our souls—to shelter us from the judgment of God. Jesus is the One who died in our stead. Jesus is the food of our souls. When you learn how much He has done for you, you will love to sit down and think of Him, and that is like an Israelite feasting on the roasted lamb. We were studying about the passover one day in Sunday school, when a dear little girl, with a happy look, said “I do love to hear about Jesus!” As I looked in her bright face I thought; there is one who is feasting on the Lamb.

There were two things to be eaten with the lamb which we will notice briefly. One was “unleavened bread,” the other, “bitter herbs.” v. 8. Now leaven, we find from God’s word is a type of evil.

See 1 Cor. 5:6, 7, 8. “Christ our pass-over is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of “sincerity and truth.” The bitter herbs represent repentance or judgment of sin in ourselves: for however we may be rejoicing that we are saved through the blood of His cross, there will ever be sorrow when we think, “It was my sins that nailed Him there.”

Now, dear children, do remember that if you are sheltered from judgment by the precious blood of Jesus, it is according to God’s estimate of its value—

“When I see the blood I will pass over you.”

E. G. B.

ML 06/17/1900

Why Do You Wait?

Why do you wait to be better,

When Jesus is calling you now?

Why do you wait till you’re older,

When NOW at His feet you may bow?

Why do you wait, when He asks you

To come as you are, in your need?

Why do you wait, while He’s pleading

To make your soul happy indeed?

Why do you wait, for the sunshine

Of days that are brighter to come?

Why do you wait, when ere morning

For’er may be settled your doom?

Why do you wait, little children?

Oh, come and believe on Him now,

Why do you wait? for He’s waiting

Salvation on you to bestow.

Wait no longer, He will save you;

Wait no longer, come today;

Wait no longer, or His offer

From you soon may pass away.

E. B. H.

ML 06/17/1900

The Happy Cripple.

The very next morning she wended her way to the humble abode of her little friend. From quite a distance she saw his pale face at the window; and as she entered the room, the little fellow smiled so brightly at her, that she saw at once her visit was very welcome. On a little table, close by him, lay a Bible and a few other little books; and the rose-bush in the window sent a delicious perfume all over the room. Besides that, there were some small pieces of wood laying on the table, out of which the poor cripple—for a pass-time— whittled various little figures; and the finished articles hanging on the walls told of his industry. After the lady had examined everything with the greatest interest, she sat down opposite poor Jacob, and began talking with him. “Is not your life sometimes a burden to you, my little friend,” she asked; “do you never wish you could be delivered forever from your sufferings?”

“Now and then I do, Madam, for at times I have such terrible pains in my back, I can hardly bear them; and then I have to stay in bed and can’t either read or whittle; but even then I am not unhappy, for I am always thinking of the Lord Jesus, and of the glorious time I shall have with Him, and shall then have no more pains to torment me.”

“Have you then no fear of death, my dear young friend?” asked the lady, in astonishment. “Oh, no, I’m not afraid of death, Madam,” replied the boy, with the brightest smile. “You see, it often appears to me as if there were no real death for me; for I know that I shall go to heaven, and it is then I shall really begin to live. There, I shall no longer be crippled, but shall be able to walk about in the beautiful city the Bible tells us of. Oh, how glorious that will be! Even now the Lord Jesus is so dear and precious to me, but then I shall love Him perfectly. You see, Madam, when I think of all this, I can forget all my sufferings.”

The lady’s astonishment reached its highest point. Her eyes rested on the patient, suffering boy, hardly knowing, in her surprise, at what she saw and heard, how to continue the conversation. At last. however, she began again in a friendly tone: “Truly you are, notwithstanding all your misery, a happy boy! Many a rich, healthy child would have reason to envy you. But tell me, have you always been so happy and contented?”

“Oh, no, Madam,” replied the boy, with an earnest look, “I used to be quite afraid at the thought of dying, for you see I was not converted. But now I know that the Lord Jesus has borne all my sins on the cross, and that He loves me very much, and has prepared a place for me in heaven. Yes, Madam, I know that for sure; and when I am alone, and in great pain, then I turn my thoughts to the Lord Jesus, and I pray for all those I know, that they may also believe on Him; and when my little friends come in to read to me, I am so glad to be able to tell them what He has done for poor, lost sinners.”

A blessed silence followed. Both the little cripple and the sympathizing lady sat in deep thought, till at last the silence was broken by Jacob with these words: “I shall not live here much longer, Madam, I feel that I shall soon go to be with Jesus, my Saviour. Every morning when my dear mother goes to her work, I look after her as long as I can, till she turns the corner and I can see her no more, and I often think then that I may never see her again in this life. But I never let her know these thoughts, because it would make her and Louise very sad. As long as I am here below, I want to be—what they call me in their love—their ‘little sunshine.’”

For quite a while the dear boy went on with his happy talk, and the lady—touched most deeply by the simplicity of his childish faith—could not tire of listening to him.

At last she took her leave, but after this she renewed her visits quite often, and they helped not a little, to brighten the last days of her dear young friend.

But the hours that Jacob had to spend on earth were numbered. About a month after her first visit, the lady received the news one morning, that the dear boy was nearing his end. She hastened to his bedside and arrived just in time to hear the last words of the dying child.

“I go—to—my home—to my—precious Jesus,” he whispered in broken accents, hardly to be heard. And as a heavenly brightness spread over his pale features, he entered the eternal home, he had so longed after.

Happy boy! Now he is up there with the Lord! Delivered forever from all pain and suffering, he beholds the face of his precious Saviour, who redeemed him with His own blood.

My dear young reader, do you long too, to get there some time? Do you wish, like Jacob, to enter those everlasting abodes of light and life? If so, then hasten now this very day, to Him who came in this world to seek and to save poor lost sinners! Go to Him, just as you are, and I can assure you that He will receive you. For He Himself said: “All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me, and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” And if you have come to Him and know Him as your own precious Saviour, then, will you not seek to “follow” Him, and serve Him faithfully, as this dear cripple-boy did? You cannot of yourself; but He has promised to help us by His Spirit, and thus to make His strength perfect in our weakness. (2 Cor. 12 :9.) And thus, you will not only please that blessed Master now, but in the glory He will reward even the least little act done out of love for Him and for His sake here below. Trans. by E. R.

ML 06/17/1900

God's Wonders in the Deep.

If you will turn to the one-hundred and-seventh Psalm and read from verse 23 to verse 31, you will see that God speaks of His wonders in the deep. He tells us of the great waves that mount up to heaven and then go down again to the depths; and tells us of His power to still these mighty waves and to make the storm a calm. And there are other wonders besides these mountain waves which roll with such fury and such power, for in the great waters are teeming millions of creatures, from the monster whale to the tiniest of fish. There are “many fish of many kinds” found in the great deep, and many creatures that are strange and wonderful.

But I wish to tell you specially about the shark, which is one of the most dreadful inhabitants of the great deep. He has great courage and activity and is not afraid to attack creatures much larger than himself. He has great goggle eyes which he turns easily on every side, and can in this way see behind him as well as in front, and so can easily watch his prey. No other fish can swim as fast as he can; his speed is so great that he can outstrip a rapid ship, and even play about it as it swiftly plies its way through the waters; and while thus swiftly moving, he will seem to gaze at the passengers without manifesting the smallest symptom of an effort to proceed.

It is said there is not an animal in the world that is harder to be killed than the shark. In hot climates where he is found in the waters he is the dread of the sailors, for he is the fiercest and most voracious of all the creatures of the mightly deep. The white shark grows from twenty to thirty feet in length; his mouth is very large and sometimes has many rows of sharp dreadful teeth; it is said there is a new row for every year; a sailor once counted twenty rows of teeth in the great jaws of a shark that had been killed. This kind of shark will feed upon anything that comes within its reach. Some sailors once found in the stomach of one they had killed, the shell of a turtle which they supposed would have weighed a hundred pounds. The flesh of the turtle had been digested but the huge shell remained, and, besides the shell, there were in his stomach three cans of beef which had probably been thrown out of some ship and had been swallowed by him. One would think he would not have much comfort with that huge shell and those cans inside of him. In the stomach of another shark that was killed was found a corpse of a human being; this seems very dreadful. They are said to have a special enmity for man—or, it may be, a special fondness for human flesh.

And now, I have a sad little story to tell you about a shark and his dreadful work. A party of men had gone out in a whaling vessel in search of whales. On discovering a large one at some distance, eight of the number got into one of the little whaling boats used for the purpose, and prepared to attack him. Their method of attack is by throwing their harpoons, or great iron-spiked rods, into his body, and then striking him with the sharp, iron prow of their boats; they then seek to get out of his way; but on this occasion they were not quick enough and the poor whale, maddened with pain, struck their boat with his tail, and turned it upside down, throwing the eight men out into the water.

They all tried to reach the boat again for this was their only hope of safety, although a boat upside down, with the great, cruel waters rolling about it, would not seem to offer much protection or security.

Three of the men were swimming near together when a shark eighteen feet long began to pursue them. The poor men, filled with terror, increased their efforts to reach the boat, but in vain. In another moment the voracious creature had turned on its side—the under jaw is so much under the head and so far back that it cannot grasp its prey until it has turned in this way—then a wild shriek, and one of their number—a Portuguese—was seen by the others to jump a few feet above the water, then fall. The dreadful shark had bitten his body right in two, and the force of the shock had been such that he was thrown up out of the water. This was a terrible sight for the other two who were striving to get to the boat and could only press on. The water about them was red with the blood of their companion and he had disappeared forever from their gaze. Soon they succeeded in reaching the boat and clambering up its sides; four others also reached it, and there, seated on it, they could watch the many sharks that had gathered about; they could not, however, touch the men for they have no power to reach out of the water, great as is their power in the water. But alas! two of their number were gone, and one, at least, of the men who were left—the one who had witnessed the poor Portuguese bitten in two, and who himself had so narrowly escaped—was greatly impressed by this solemn scene.

He felt that if he had been taken by the sharks he would have gone into eternity unsaved, and this made him resolve that he would live a different life, and that he would now begin to serve the Lord. He did not know that he was a poor, lost sinner and that he must be born again before he could acceptably serve God, for “without faith it is impossible to please Him.” (Heb. 11:6.) But God had spoken to his conscience and had made him feel the solemn realities of eternity.

After some hours of waiting, the ship which these men had left came to their aid and rescued them from their perilous situation. The one of whom I have been telling you began to live, as’ he thought, a better life, but soon he found his good resolves were all broken, and so it will always be, dear children, if we think we can please God by our good works, or in our own strength.

Again and again, after this, the Lord allowed him to be in circumstances of danger from which he narrowly escaped with his life. All this served to keep before him the thought of eternity, and made him desire to know the way of salvation. And God, in His grace, after He had made him to know his own worthlessness and helplessness, met him and saved him, making him to rejoice in Jesus as his Saviour.

You may see from this sad little history, dear children, how God sometimes uses terrible circumstances to arrest a lost soul and turn it to Himself! If you will give Him your heart while it is yet young and tender, you will not have to be brought to Him through any such fearful way—if you are brought at all. It is those who have hardened themselves in sin and wickedness who have to be broken all to pieces before they will turn to God.

May it never be so with you. May you now give heed to God’s word, “Son, give me thine heart”! Come while you may! The Lord Jesus says, “Him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out.”

ML 06/24/1900

Lost but Found.

In one of the large department stores of a great city, a little girl had wandered away from her mother, who was busy making some purchases, and was lost among the vast throng of people, daily frequenting this place.

Presently, the mother discovered that her child was missing, and became very anxious about her. She sought, in vain, to find her, as the little one, unconscious of her position and danger, had wandered some distance away, and every moment was getting further off. While seeking for the child, the mother’s mind became filled with misgivings as to her safety; and her heart was beginning to give way under so severe a strain. Almost frantic with grief, at the thought of losing her child forever, she notified one of the head managers of the department, who immediately sent a number of persons in search of the lost one. At length, they found her, in another part of the store, looking about quite contentedly at all the pretty things she saw. She seemed to have very little thought that she was lost, while the things that she saw were engaging her attention.

But think of the mother’s joy at this moment. With open arms she pressed her darling child to her bosom, and was seen to weep copiously over her; not now from the sorrow of her being lost, but from the joy of her being found.

This little incident brought to my mind the fifteenth chapter of Luke, in which we find the mutual love of the Father (God) and the Shepherd (the Lord Jesus) in seeking, and their joy in finding that which was lost. Just like the little girl, we were lost, and the Father’s love was going out after us with a yearning desire that we might be brought back to Him. He was anxious for us, but we knew it not. We were trying to make ourselves happy away from Him, but we were lost and in imminent danger. The Father sent His Son after us to seek and to find us. He did not give up seeking until He found us, and having found us, He saved us from an awful and eternal death.

“He goeth after that which is lost, until He find it. And when He hath found it, He layeth it on His shoulders, rejoicing.”

“There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”

“Let us eat, and be merry,” says the Father, “for this My son was dead, and is alive again; and he was lost, and is found.”

Who of us could conceive for a moment, the depth of joy that is in the heart of the Shepherd upon finding, and in the heart of the Father upon receiving home the dead and lost one? And, if such be the present joy, what must it be when the Son shall present us to Himself, before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, when He takes us home, and calls together His friends to rejoice with Him! (Luke 15:6, Jude 24.)

The Shepherd is still seeking; the Father is still welcoming; and there is still joy in heaven over the sinner that repents. Are you, reader, on the Shepherd’s shoulders, or in the far country?

If the latter, then know that the gospel is the Shepherd’s voice to you, seeking to save you. All has been provided, and the Father waits to welcome you with joy. The Shepherd has given His life for the sheep, and His blood has been shed that you might be washed from your sins. John 10:11, Rev. 1:5.

G. B. E.

ML 06/27/1900

Jesus and the Children.

I WANT to have the children read

A story sweet and true,

Which happened many years ago—

About the children, too.

Now let us turn to Mark, and read;

Begin at chapter ten,

And let us all give earnest heed,

To what was uttered then.

At verse thirteen we will begin,

To end of sixteen go,

And learn the wondrous love of Him

Who stooped in grace so low.

You see how Jesus was displeased,

For His disciples sought

To turn away the people all,

Who little children brought.

Let little children come to Me,

Such were His words of love,

And little ones like these shall share

My heavenly home above.

He gently took them in His arms,

And blessed them in His love,

And soon He’ll come from heaven again,

And bear them up above.

And now, this same dear, loving Lord,

Has gone to God on high,

And He would have you with Him there,

To share eternal joy.

Dear little ones, remember then

He’s just the same today,

As when He blessed those children small,

While on His pilgrim way.

His loving arms are just as strong,—

His love is just as true,—

Will you not fully trust Him, now,

And He will bless you, too.

C. C. C.

ML 06/24/1900

Bible Questions for July.

The answers to these questions are to be found in Acts, and the first letter of each answer will spell what the man said to Cornelius who stood before him in bright clothing.

Answer each question, give chapter and verse, and tell what the letters spell.

1.What was the name of the one to whom this book was written?

2.What question did Paul ask the disciples when he came to Ephesus?

3.Write out all the remaining part of this verse, “And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people,”

4.To whom did the Spirit say, “Go near and join thyself to this chariot”?

5.Give the verse following this, “Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter; for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.”

6.Where was Apollos born?

7.As the apostles looked steadfastly toward heaven as Jesus went up, what did the two men in white apparel say to them?

8.To what country did the eunuch belong, who had charge of all the treasures of Queen of Candace?

9.Give the name of the damsel who came to hearken at the door when Peter knocked.

10.When Lydia was baptized and her household, what did she say to Paul and those with him?

11.Who was it that fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, “Why persecutest thou Me”?

12.Who was it that killed James the brother of John with a sword?

13.Write the whole of the verse following this, “Or else let these same here say, if they have found any evil doing in me, while I stood before the council.”

14.What was the name of the man to whom Peter said, “Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost”?

15.In what place was Paul, when he was allowed to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him?

16. In what place did Paul preach boldly in the name of Jesus?

Answers to Questions for May 6th

1.Luke 22:63

2. 22:48

3.12:31

4.15:2

5.12:37

6.5:8

7.12:46

8.10:21

9.15:5

10.24:38

11.13:4

12.3:15

“The Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not.” Luke 12:40.

ML 07/01/1900

A Letter from One of Our Readers.

Dear Sir:— I would be so glad if you would answer in your “Messages of Love” what is “believing in Christ.” I believe that Jesus died for me because I am a sinner and I naturally accept it for myself.

But then how is it, that if Christ died for all, why are not all saved? Surely He could not have borne the sins of all. But I do believe He died for me.

How sweet is that verse. “Whosoever will let him take the water of life freely.” Hoping you will be so kind as to reply in your next. I remain yours truly,

A LEARNER.

In the letter from “A learner”, there are two questions,— “What is believing in Christ?” and, “If Christ died for all, why are not all saved?”

To believe in Christ is to receive God’s testimony to Him as a Saviour, and to trust in Him, according to that testimony. Faith is the soul’s reception of what God says. If we receive what He says about Christ and His work for us, we find rest and peace, in believing His testimony.

“Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness” (Rom. 4:3.) God spoke to Abraham, and he believed what God said. That was faith, and through that faith he was counted righteous. God also speaks to us now. He tells us of Jesus Christ, His Son, how He died for us, and was “set forth a propitiation through faith in His blood, and assures us that He is righteous in justifying us when we believe. And if we believe, He tells us that Jesus was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification; so that when we believe in Christ, we learn that all our sins were laid on Him at the cross, and that He bore God’s judgment for them in our stead, so that we can never be judged for them.

But we cannot learn this until we have believed. When we have believed God, then, He assures us that Christ bore our sins in His own body on the tree. See 1 Pet. 2:24; Isa 53:6.

Scripture does, not tell us that Christ bore the sins of all men. He bore the sins of those who, believe, and so it is only when we believe that we can know that this applies to us personally. On the other hand Scripture does tell us that Christ died for all. “For there is one God, and our mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a ransom for all.” “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (1 Tim. 2: 5, 6; John 3: 14, 15.) The sacrifice of Christ was sufficient for the whole world, and because of this the door of salvation has been thrown open for all. But it is only through faith, that a sinner gets the benefit of Christ’s work, and if any are not saved, it is because they believe not. “He that believeth not, shall be dammed.” (Mark 16:16.)

A. H. R.

ML 07/01/1900

The Famine in India.

I WOULD like to tell the young readers of this little paper something about the great famine in India.

British India is a country about one half as large as the United States, and has a population of about three hundred millions. The famine there takes in the entire country except the provinces of Bengal and Burmah. There are nearly two hundred millions of people dwelling within this famine affected radius. The lack of rain has blasted almost the entire crops of the country. “Poor India! Who can paint her woes!” The merciless famine is claiming many victims, besides the bubonic plague which they say is carrying off the people at the rate of one thousand a day. Drinking water too, is very scarce and must be hauled for miles by slow modes. The government has millions of people at work, seeking to relieve the sick and starving. These people employed by the government get merely a living of rice for their, labors.

But those whom the government are feeding, are a very small portion of the whole, and millions must be fed by private charity, or starve to death.

The worst of all, dear readers, is that these people are mostly heathen.

They do not know that blessed One, the Lord Jesus, who came to die for sinners.

How sad to see people living and dying without Christ And yet there are many in this land of Bibles who do not know Jesus as their Saviour. We may be thankful that we live where the word of God is known and loved by many, but we should also seek to make this word our own. Unless we are sheltered by the precious blood of Jesus, we are no better off for eternity than these poor Hindoos. Oh, may all who read this not neglect to accept God’s message to sinners, that He sent His Son into this poor dark world that He might die for our sins.

And let us, who know that our sins are forgiven, lift up our hearts to our God and Father that He will send these poor Hindoos, bread for their bodies’ sake, and also give them to know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour.

N. F. C.

ML 07/01/1900

"Cast Thy Burden on the Lord and He Will Sustain Thee." Ps. 55:22.

A dear old Christian was feeling how unable he was to meet the troubles and sorrows and difficulties of this life; so he said to the Lord: “Lord, Thou knowest I am a weak child, and cannot walk; Thou must carry me.” Someone asked him, “What answer did the Lord give you?” He replied, “It was as if He said to me: Well, John, if you must be carried, you must keep little.”

“He shall gather the lambs with His arm and carry them in His bosom.” Isa. 40:11.

Go to Him, dear boys and girls, for strength; tell Him all you feel. There is nothing too great, and nothing too small for Him to notice, for He is God.

“His love is as great as His power,

And knows neither measure nor end!”

A. F.

ML 07/01/1900

Would You Linger Around the Stump?

SOME of the children who read these lines, no doubt live in a timbered country where the land has to be cleared of the logs and stumps before it can be tilled, and know how it has to be done. In some countries where the trees grow so large, a great many use powder to blow out the stumps, which is quite an exciting time for the children. After the hole is dug under the stump, and the powder is put in, with a long fuse attached to it, and the hole filled up again, everything is ready; and as soon as the fuse is lighted, away they all scamper to find refuge behind a tree or something else, and then wait with breathless suspense for the explosion. This reminds me of those who have sought refuge in Christ, from the coming judgment which is hanging over this world. After we are safe in Him, we should watch with eagerness for His coming for us, which means death and judgment for those left behind.

Now, a word to those of my readers who. have not sought refuge in Christ from the coming judgment. Suppose one of the little boys would linger around the stump after the fuse had been lighted, in spite of the entreaties from the others to flee for safety, you would think he was very foolish, wouldn’t you? Let me say, dear reader, if you are still rejecting Christ as your Saviour; you are worse than he! For God has condemned this world for rejecting His Son, and has placed the charge upon it, and the fuse, which is “time,” has been burning for over-eighteen hundred years.

Every moment you linger around in this world without Christ as your hiding place, and reject God’s call, you are like the boy who would. linger around the stump, just as though there was no danger, when in the next instant the blast, might explode, which would mean sure death for him. Now just so with you; when. Christ comes, which is apt to take place at any moment, then all that will be left for you will be judgment.

Would you be like the boy and linger around a stump that the next instant might be torn to pieces? You say, No. Be careful you are not doing something worse. What a sad thing it would be to be left to that time when—

“Too late, too late will be the cry, Jesus of Nazareth has passed by.”

“Flee from the wrath to come.” Matt.

3:7. F. E B.

ML 07/01/1900

I Have Commanded the Ravens to Feed Thee.

I WANT to tell you about something that happened nearly three thousand years ago. It is a true story, for it is God who has told us about it.

There was a man by the name of Elijah, who feared God and sought to obey Him, and there were others at that time who did not fear God, but pleased themselves, and went. on in sin, and provoked God to anger. So this man told the King of Israel what would happen. He said: “As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.” 1 Kings 17:1.

What a dreadful thing that was, to be without rain, and it lasted “three years and six months.” James 5:17.

That was punishment God brought on the people for their sin. No doubt, they did not like that, but it was the sad result of doing what was wrong. It may have seemed very well for them to please themselves for a time by doing what was wrong, and forget that God would punish them, but how sad when God began to deal with them.

That is like a great many people today, and children, too. They do things as if there was no God and forget that God will punish sin.

This man, Elijah did not suffer because there was no rain. He depended on God, and feared God, and God told him where to go, and how He would take care of him. “The word of the Lord came unto him, saying, get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.”

So you see, God who is over all things, and has all power, took care of Elijah because he feared and depended upon Him.

Dear children, may you learn a lesson from this; remember, that disobedience and all sin, ends at sometime with sorrow, but if you fear God knowing that He is always looking at you and knows all you do, He will keep you from evil, and He will also take care of you.

J. T. A.

“Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Rom. 3:24.

ML 07/08/1900

The Young Captive in the Robbers' Hut.

A FEW years since, a party of ladies and gentlemen was leaving the shores of England for the purpose of visiting foreign parts, but more especially that part so celebrated in history and in Scripture (I mean the country of Greece), so famous, too, on account of the Apostle Paul having traveled there with the glad tidings of the grace of God, and preaching the forgiveness of sins, through the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But the kingdom had fallen, and instead of being a glorious land, full of noble warriors, conquering and subduing, it was despoiled, and its forests and mountain ravines had become the haunts of brigands and robbers, so that it was unsafe to travel in many parts, unless guarded by a body of soldiers. But our company was not of the timid kind, and, English like, risked danger for novelty. The party comprised ladies and gentlemen, and I believe a child or two were with them. They left Athens in high spirits, and enjoyed the fine scenery that here and there burst upon their view. As they left some deep defile, they suddenly came upon a gap where they saw stretched before them a great panorama of beauty. But their pleasure was short lived, for on arriving at a rude sort of cottage, they were suddenly surrounded by a gang of brigands, —men of fierce countenance, men used to plunder, whose lives were spent in wickedness. Resistance was useless. The robbers were too strong for them, and they could but submit. They were hurried on for some distance, so as to be out of the reach of capture, and the ladies and children were sent back by a trusty guard, while the unfortunate captives were again hurried onward, over mountains and through valley’s, sometimes down the deep gorges of the rocks, by paths known only to the robbers, who knew the value of their prisoners, and meant to, make great gain by them.

Accordingly, as the prisoners desired to be released, a heavy ransom price was put upon the head of each. And the robber-captain sent a messenger to their friends, stating the price that was to be paid for their ransom. Soldiers were sent to rescue the unfortunate travelers, while friends were trying to get the money that was asked for their release. But the brigands knew the rocky strongholds and hiding places better than did the soldiers. When the robbers saw that soldiers were on their track, and that they were closely pursued, they sent a threatening message, that unless the ransom money was paid before a certain day and a free pardon granted to all the gang, they would kill all the prisoners. This made the friends of the prisoners very anxious, and they wished to buy them off, rather than run the risk of their being rescued by the soldiers, and being killed in the combat.

Accordingly a messenger, or courier, was sent; who, guided by a man that knew their whereabouts, found them confined in a mud-hut. His description was as follows:—

“The hut was round, and in the middle was a round fireplace in which a wood fire was burning. On each side of the door, at a little distance, the capotes and cloaks lay all round the fire. The prisoners were opposite the entrance. I found them lying down asleep. This was after eleven o’clock at night. On each side were four or five brigands sitting between them and the door. Of course they were coming in and relieving each other; but there was always sufficient to watch them, around and ready, to be alert on the first sign; and there was no chance of those gentlemen going out without having to go over the brigands.”

A long conversation took place between the gentlemen and the courier.

The chieftain was very angry and furious; and as he could not speak English the courier had to be the interpreter, by whom he still threatened to take their lives if the ransom-money was not paid.

There was one youth among the prisoners I want to speak about, a young man of noble family, and much loved by all who knew him. The courier, who had known him, was exceedingly fond of him; insomuch that he offered to take his place and be prisoner in his stead; but this the young man refused.

However, through some misunderstanding, before the ransom could be paid the soldiers were pretty close on the track of the brigands, and hoping to rescue the prey from their hands.

During the long time that elapsed, the position of the prisoners became serious. They now began to feel that it was a question of life and death. They were allowed to write, and the letters of the young man spoke of their perilous position, beseeching his friends to send the ransom, money, or it would be too late. From an expression in his letter, we can hope he knew of One who had been God’s ransom, to redeem him from a worse condition of slavery than being imprisoned in a robber’s hut; and we trust he knew the redemption that was in Christ Jesus; for he had been educated in an English college and had been trained in a God-fearing way. In speaking of their solemn position, he says, “Pray to God for us!” Oh! what depth of meaning. Finding himself in the grasp of men who feared neither God nor man, he is constrained to lift up his heart in prayer.

In another letter, directly afterwards, after again speaking of the peril, he says, “If it be possible, send me a Bible!” Ah, what does that little sentence bespeak! Hope of release seemed gone; and now in these solemn moments he pants for the fountain of life. The Word of God is all his desire now. But the Bible never reached him. It might be that the truths he had learned in school had been treasured up in his mind and memory, so that he could meditate thereon, and have peace with God through faith in Christ Jesus.

What a blessed thing it is to be instructed in early days in the precious truth of God, and to have the mind and heart stored with His word, so that if in circumstances where a Bible cannot reach us, we can feed on that which is stored up in the memory; to have the knowledge, too, of the redemption that is in Christ, the blessed Surety that did take our place; and died for us in order to redeem us from Satan and everlasting destruction. Then, indeed, when we have learned what it is to have eternal life through believing on the Son of God, and that His blood has cleansed us from all sin, then death will have lost its terror; and more blessed would it be to go direct from a robber’s hut to heaven, and to be with Christ, than to be released, if unconverted, and to be made one of the princes of the earth.

However, the brigands seemed driven to desperation; and one day finding the soldiers were close upon their track, determined to, fulfill their threat; and in the presence of the soldiers, in the most barbarous manner, slew the prisoners.

The soldiers pressed close upon them, and fired as often as they could get in sight. Many of the brigands were also killed; others who were wounded escaped, but were afterwards captured and brought to punishment. The bodies of the prisoners were found. They had been cruelly treated. There lay the dear young man we spoke of, calm in death, as though he had died instantly without a convulsion or a struggle.

The messenger, on seeing the form of his young master whom he loved, stooped down and kissed the fair brow of the youth, wishing in his inmost heart that he had been his surety and died for him.

The bodies of the slain brigands were discovered higher up the slope of the mountain, from seeing the vultures hovering around the spot. You remember it says in Matt. 24:28. “Wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together.”

Oh, how little heed is given to the Bible in a land where Bibles abound. “Send me a Bible,” was the dying youth’s last desire. Dear young one, let the precious volume be your treasure. Read it prayfully. Seek God’s guidance in reading its pages, that your heart may get hold of divine wisdom. You know it says, the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding. To many a Christian it can be said, “From a child thou has known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation.”

Selected.

ML 07/08/1900

"The Lord Hath His Way in the Whirlwind and in the Storm."

YEARS ago, a cyclone passed through a corner of the State of Nebraska, carrying destruction in its path; great trees were rooted up, houses were blown to pieces, and nothing was able to resist the violence and fury of the whirling wind.

Mrs. T. looked out with an anxious heart as she saw the storm approaching in the distance; the dark, funnel-shaped cloud was not to be mistaken—a cyclone was about to burst upon them. She called to her husband to know if they should not take shelter in the cave; but it was too late; already the wind was blowing with such violence that Mr. T. could scarcely force the open door shut. Another moment and the roof of the house was taken off. and Mr. and Mrs. T., their five children, and the servant girl, were, all caught up by the whirlwind and carried away—some to one place, some to another.

When the poor mother, who was in delicate health, recovered herself enough to get up, she found she was unhurt, although she had been carried many rods away. But now her thoughts turn to her husband and children. Where are they? Hark! there’s a cry; it is the baby’s voice. She hastens to the spot from whence the sound comes and finds her little one lying unhurt behind a stack of straw—its shelter, the roof of the house!

What, a striking proof that God has His way in the whirlwind! The little babe had been caught up and laid as tenderly down behind the stack, as if a mother’s hand had placed it there; and the great roof had been whirled about and found its resting place against the stack in such a way as to protect the child from injury instead of falling on it and crushing it to death. How marvelous is God’s protecting care!

The violence of the storm was soon past, and the missing ones were sought after and found. Not one was killed, but several of the children were somewhat bruised. The house was blown down, and the furniture was scattered. When some of the pieces were found, they were twisted and warped as if some immense power had been applied; and such, indeed, there had been, for the force of the whirlwind cannot be estimated.

The father and mother were Christians, and they owned that this sad calamity was the Lord’s hand upon them. The father said the Lord had a controversy with them. But they owned His goodness in sparing their lives and thus shewing mercy to them.

And now, what shall we learn from this wonderful incident! Let us not forget that God flies upon the wings of the wind, and that He has His way in the storm.

We do not need to fear the whirlwind nor the storm, for they cannot touch us unless God permit; we need have no fear to let God have His way. But there is something, we do need to fear, that is, going our own way, for this it is that will bring God’s displeasure upon us. R.

ML 07/08/1900

Secrets.

I EXPECT all the readers of this paper know what secrets are; and very likely not only know what they are, but have had a number of them. Generally, it is a bad thing to have secrets, for very often it is the desire to hide something that is bad. Perhaps for fear of getting punished for it, or for what others might think of you. But, dear children, remember you can never hide anything from God; and more, God has told us in His word, “Nothing is secret that shall not be known and come abroad.” Luke 8:17. Then there is another portion which says, “In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men, by Jesus Christ.” Rom. 2:16. So we see that it is not only that all that has been kept secret, is going to be brought out, but God is also going to judge the secrets. How often little boys and girls are tempted to do something wrong, and because they think it will not be found out, they do it. They, forget that God knows all about it, and that He is going to bring it out and judge it, too. Then another thing is, if they see it is apt to be found out, they will tell a lie to try and still hide it, and in that way they add sin upon sin.

May you remember, dear children, that God knows every secret thing, and turn away from all that you would not like to get down on your knees and tell to God, or you would not like your father or mother to know.

J. T. A.

ML 07/15/1900

Not "Feeling," but "Believing."

SHORTLY after finding peace with God about my sins, I went to see a man who was dying with consumption. I read and talked to him from time to time. As he always assented to what I said, I almost persuaded myself that he might be trusting in the Lord. One night in speaking of that blessed truth for believers— “Lo, I am with you always”—as near as I can remember, the following conversation took place. I said, “What a blessing to have Jesus with you and to know His sympathy.” The poor man looked at me with tears in his eyes, and said, “Yes, it is all true, but He is not near enough to me yet.” “And do you not know your sins forgiven?” I asked.

“No, I wish I did.”

“Well, James, you know you are a sinner, and that you need to be converted, and that Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost.” “Yes, but I do not know how to be converted.”

He had lived in the north of Ireland during the great revival of 1850, and had witnessed many stricken down under the sense of their guilt, and had seen too, the wonderful joy that followed, when the truth of God’s salvation came to them. He thought something of the same kind must happen to him, and Satan was using this to hinder him from coming to the Saviour just as he was. He could not feel as those did, yet he wanted to. How many are like this! God says, “Look unto Me, and be ye saved.” I read to him Isa. 53:6, “All we, like sheep, have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way.” James owned it was true of all, and true of him. “And the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Yes, he believed that too. I said, “You believe Jesus bore your sins on the cross?” “Yes, but I do not feel I am saved.” We turned to John 3:36, “He that believeth on the Son bath everlasting life.” Not he that feeleth, but he that believeth on the Son. I know I am saved and have everlasting life, because God’s word says so: I go by God’s word. My feelings change; God’s word never changes. We read Rom. 10:9, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

“Now, James, if you are going to wait for salvation till you feel it, you will be lost for all eternity James, do you believe. God raised Christ from the dead?”

“Yes, I do. Nobody could believe that more than me.” “Well, God has shown us that He is satisfied with the work of Christ, in raising Him. And nothing now remains but for you to confess Him with your mouth. James, will you trust Him from this time?” James gave me his hand that he would trust the Lord. “Now, what does this mean, “Thou shalt be saved?” “That is what God says to me.” Afterwards he said, “I always thought I had something to do.”

A few days after this I called and found his bodily strength was failing. “What about your sins?” I inquired.

“Jesus bore them on the tree.”

“Are you quite sure you are not mistaken?” He looked at me almost reproachfully, thinking I might be doubting his reality, and said, “I know I am saved, for God says so.” John 10:28, 29, was a source of comfort to him, in showing the eternal security of the believer, and that he was in Christ’s and the Father’s hands. I was called away from home; on my return his widow told me how peacefully he had passed away to be with his Saviour.

My dear young friends, do not put away the desire in your soul to be saved. Come now and trust. Him. Satan seeks to blind you with this world’s fleeting pleasures. You do not need to wait for anything. Now is God’s accepted time. You know you need salvation. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” Act’s 16:31.

A. F.

ML 07/15/1900

Oh, Happy Day!

A BOY was riding along the road in a wagon, singing in a clear voice.

“Happy day! Happy day!

When Jesus washed my sins away.”

As I heard him sing, I thought, Is that from his heart, or only from the lips? Oh, I do trust it is with all his heart he can sing, “Oh, happy day, when Jesus washed my sins away.” Dear little reader, how is it with you? Have you ever been able to say, Jesus has washed my sins away? If not you have never known a truly happy day. But if so, you have not only one happy day but many. For when we know Jesus as our Saviour—the One who has borne our sins and cleansed us from all sin—we can rejoice in the Lord always. And more than that, when our happy days on earth are over, we shall have a happy eternity to spend with

“Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood.” Rev. 1: 5.

E. G. B.

ML 07/15/1900

"There Is No Peace, Saith My God, to the Wicked."

GOD tells us in His word that “the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.” Have you ever been out on the great deep and seen the heaving, surging, tossing billows; always moving, never quiet, never at rest? And have you been at the sea-shore and bathed in its restless waters and noticed, as the great waves came rolling in and breaking over you, how much of “mire and dirt” they carried? If you have, you will understand better the description God has given to us of the wicked. And what a picture it is!

It is when a person has gone in the ways of sin—when he has followed his own will, departing from God’s way, that he is like the heaving, restless ocean. If you could look into the heart of such a person, you would find there was no rest there; you would see a craving for something that could not be found, just as the great waves toss and seem to say, I am not satisfied. It is not that a wicked person will not try to make himself happy, for this he will surely do.

He will drink at the fountains of this world’s pleasures; but his heart is not satisfied, his thirst is not quenched; he drinks again, but only to thirst afresh. He is restless, unsatisfied, unhappy—like the troubled sea. What about the future for him? Ah! it is all dark and foreboding; no gleam of light—not the smallest ray—to carry comfort to his unhappy heart. He may try, to think himself happy as he pursues his sinful course, but he has no peace, and without peace one cannot be happy. “There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” His ways are sinful, and leave their evil impress, like the waters of the sea casting up their “mire and dirt.”

It is a dark, dark picture to look at, is it not, dear children? But it only shows into what a wretched condition man will be brought, if he follows his own ways.

In what happy and blessed contrast with this is the picture God gives us of the one who walks in His way. He tells us in His word that He will keep in perfect peace the one whose mind is stayed on Him. And while He tells us “there is no peace to the wicked,” He tells us, “Great peace have they which love Thy law.”

Which is it with you, dear children — “no peace,” or “great peace”? If the former, look to Jesus. He has made peace by the blood of His cross. If you believe in Him, every stroke that was due to you for your sins has been taken by Him, and those strokes will never fall upon you. Jesus is now at God’s right hand, and this is the proof to us that all is settled, and that God is satisfied. And so God tells us that He “was raised again for our justification.” Does that give peace? Oh! yes, it does. We are cleared from all charge of guilt, justified from all our sins, and knowing this we have rest of heart—we have peace with God. And this is not through our doing, but simply through believing that Jesus has done all for us. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

May each one of my dear little readers know this blessed peace!

ML 07/15/1900

The Lord Is My Shepherd.

A LITTLE girl was once asked to find and write down all the verses where “Shepherd” was found. She found a great many, but the last one she wrote on her paper was “The Lord is my Shepherd,” adding “He is my own kind, tender Shepherd.” How nice it would be if each little girl and boy who reads this paper could say the same. If not, may the Lord lead you to know Him now.

E. B. H.

ML 07/15/1900

A Letter to the Readers of "Messages of Love."

Dear Children: —Two or three weeks ago I picked up “Messages of Love” and got a real joy and pleasure in reading the names of the prize-winners. There were the names of boys and girls I have seen in Canada, and in far-off Oregon, and in several other states. It was a great pleasure to read the names: I know they studied a good deal to get all their answers right, but it will do them good. Besides getting prizes, they will get something a good deal better than prizes or gold either, and that is, they will know things in the precious word of God. Now, children, remember all you learn about Jesus, —the whole sweet story, for every word of it is worth more than all this world to you. Believe it with all your hearts, and live and trust the One who died for you, for He is soon coming into this world. again. If He should not come before then, I’d be so glad to read again, in another year, the same dear names, and others with them.

Affectionately.

W. D. C.

ML 07/15/1900

Elephants.

MOST of my little readers have probably seen elephants at some time in their life, and will, no doubt, think of them as large, ungainly creatures. They are, indeed, homely to look at, but, usually, they are very gentle and they are also very wise.

Children, and older folks, too, often find much pleasure in giving them such things as they like to eat; and they watch with curiosity the long, strange looking trunk as it reaches out and takes adroitly and daintily the apple, or cake, or other tit-bit held out for it, and then turns it under and upwards until the portion given has reached its mouth, when it is seen no more. These huge and awkward looking creatures can be trained to stand for a little while on two legs; or to stand on a tub, turned upside down, their four feet drawn together and all resting on it at once; or to make a bridge by two of them standing on their hind feet, and putting their front feet together, while a third passes under; or to take a little mouth harp into the end of their trunk and play vigorously on it; and this they seem to enjoy so much they do not wish to give up their instruments when the keeper would take them away.

These and many other amusing and intelligent things they will do; but I wish to tell you of an elephant who not only showed great intelligence, but was very humane also.

It was away off in India where the people use elephants when they go to hunt tigers, and other wild animals. They have little cages or houses fastened on the elephant’s back, and in these cages often a number of people sit. At one time the Grand Vizier made preparations for a great hunt. He had many of the nobles gathered together, and the elephants all put in. readiness. He himself headed the, procession and rode upon his favorite elephant, which was a noble creature. When all was ready they moved slowly off. They soon came to a ravine and after passing through it, they entered a meadow in which were lying a number of sick people who had been carried there to get the benefit of the pure, fresh air; for in that hot and thickly settled country there are often famines and scourges which make very many sick. These poor, sick people were lying on the ground, just where the Grand Vizier wanted to pass with his retinue, and they were too sick and feeble to crawl out of the way.

The Vizier was a cruel man and he thought in his wicked heart that it would be a nice sight to see these poor, sick people mangled and crushed under the huge feet of the elephants, so he ordered the driver of his elephant, who sat in front of the little cage that held him, to goad the elephant so he would go fast; this the driver did, and the elephant went on a trot. But when he came to the first invalid he stopped short. The Vizier began to curse, and called to the driver to stick the elephant in the ear, and the driver again goaded him. But the noble elephant stood still, refusing to go on, and trample the poor, sick people to death.

After waiting awhile and seeming to understand that the sick people were helpless and unable to move themselves out of the way, he took up the first with his trunk and laid him gently down again at one side, then he took up a second, and a third, and so on, until he had made a clear passage along which the retinue could pass without doing hurt to any of them.

Was not this a noble and intelligent action on the part of the elephant! The beast was, in this case, gentler than the man.

Man’s heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, God tells us. But when the kindness of Jesus is made known to us, and when the love of God fills our hearts, we will not only show kindness and love to our fellow beings, but we will also treat the animals with gentleness and tenderness.

“A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” (Prov. xii. 10.)

Also let us learn lessons from the beasts, many of which are noble, gentle, wise, intelligent and industrious. Many of them might well put man, who knows so much more, to shame.

ML 07/22/1900

Animals of the Bible.

The Lamb.

NOW, dear children, there is much more we might say on the subject of the lamb, as a type of our Lord Jesus, until we find Him— a Lamb as it had been slain—on the throne in heaven. Rev. 5. But now we will look at a few Scriptures which speak of lambs, as illustrations of little believing children. The first we shall find in 1 Sam. 17. A lion came and took one of David’s lambs. David went after the lion and took the little lamb out of his mouth, and slew him.

Dear little child, do you not see in this what Jesus has done for you? He has conquered Satan and delivered you from his power.

In Isa. 40 you will see the blessed place the Lord’s lambs have. “He shall feed His flock like a Shepherd; He shall gather the lambs with His arm and carry them in His bosom.” His strong arm is put forth to gather you out of this evil world, and from the power of Satan, to Himself, and then.

“His tender bosom bears each lamb

O’er rock and waste and wild;

The object of that love I am,

And carried like a child.”

But in order to be in that happy place of strength and love, you must know Jesus as your own Shepherd. The One who laid down His life for His sheep. Let me tell you a little story of one who knew Him thus. A servant of the Lord met a shepherd boy. He had not much time to tell him of the blessed Lord Jesus, so he spoke of Him as the Shepherd. He knew the boy would understand that, as he was used to caring for sheep and lambs. He taught him to say a little verse of only five words, and as he said it to touch a separate finger of his left hand for each word, till he came to the fourth one and then to clasp that one tightly in his right hand. This was the verse: — “The Lord is my Shepherd.” Ps. 23:1. Not long after, the boy was found dead. Some of his lambs had wandered away, and in following them, he had lost his life. But when they found him, his right hand was tightly clasping the fourth finger of the left, as though with his last breath he had said: “The Lord is my Shepherd.” No doubt as he was seeking his lost lambs, his thoughts were on the Good Shepherd, who had sought him and was bearing him home.

Now, dear children, when you say this verse, stop when you come to the fourth word, and see if you can say, as the dying shepherd boy did, “The Lord is my Shepherd.” E. G. B.

ML 07/22/1900

The Watch.

In a Christian home were two little children, the younger of whom was a boy scarcely a year old. This little child, like most of babes, was very fond of looking at a watch, of having it in his hands, and of hearing it tick. A servant of the Lord, who frequently visited the child’s parents, would amuse and interest the little fellow with his watch. When he took it from his pocket and held it in his hand so that the child could see it, away the little fellow would go, leaving behind all his play-things, which before had perfectly contented him, and on reaching the one who held the treasure in his hand, he would scramble up on his knee and try to get it.

When he saw the watch he did not stop to think of the pretty toys about him, and he did not cry nor mourn over leaving them. Oh! no, the beautiful watch was attracting him, and the toys were forgotten—left behind as things he had ceased to care for.

There are many young people who would like to become Christians who are not as wise as this little babe was. They see many things in the world to attract them, which they know the Lord would not be pleased to have them go on with, if they were Christians; and, their hearts being drawn by these things, they often put off the solemn and important question of their soul’s salvation, listening to Satan’s alluring lie, that it will be time enough when they are older. Thus they will reason, and go on apart from God, rather than give up what seems to them so pleasing.

If any of you, my young readers, have had such thoughts, I trust you will see that what is offered you in Christ is so much better than all these things that you have counted dear, that you will be ready at once to make the happy exchange, even as the dear little babe who left all that had pleased him for what was much more pleasing.

When you think of the wondrous love of Jesus in giving Himself for us, and of His bearing God’s judgment in our stead, is not your heart touched? If only you will accept Him as your own Saviour you will find in Him beauties and worth such as you now know nothing of. You will know Him as risen and seated at God’s right hand in glory, thinking about you and doing what is best for you. In your sorrows and trials He will be with you, for He will never leave nor forsake you; and soon He will come and take you, with all His loved people to His blessed home, there to be with Him and like Him forever.

Think of these things; then think of the world with its glittering show and its passing pleasures, followed by an eternity of woe, and say which you will choose! The paltry things of this world are as nothing compared with all the blessings and joys that are to be found in Christ, and that will last throughout eternity!

Hesitate no longer; come to Christ at once, and these blessings shall be yours. The things which now seem so bright and attractive will lose their value, and the treasures in Christ you will find to be of infinitely greater worth! A.

ML 07/22/1900

"That's a Prayer."

SITTING by the bedside of one, young in years, who was passing away from this world to be with the Lord, I noticed her little hand now and then raised, as if to signal someone.

Seeing me, she murmured, “That’s a prayer; I cannot speak it, but He knows.”

The heart of this young girl was going out to the Lord; but, although unable to express her thoughts in words, the lifting of her hand told out what was going on within, and all was known to the Lord, and those who call upon Him, call not in vain. His own word is

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me.” Ps. 1:15.

A. F.

ML 07/22/1900

The Sweetest Name.

I asked a little darling child,

“Which is the sweetest name?”

And from her lips, without a pause,

The accents, “Jesus,” came.

“And do you know,” continued I,

“One who that name doth own?”

“I do, I do!” she sweetly said,

“He sits on heaven’s bright throne.”

“And why does He, my precious

child,

The name of JESUS bear?”

A smile at once lit up her face,

So pleasing and so fair:

“He bears the name,” her answer was

“Because He shed His blood

To save the wretched and the lost,

And brine them nigh to God.”

ML 07/22/1900

Nineveh.

About twenty-seven hundred years ago, God told a man, by the name of Jonah, to go to the city of Nineveh which was in the land of Assyria, situated on the River Tigris, and proclaim His message to the people, which was, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”

The reason that God sent this warning to the inhabitants of that city, was on account of their wickedness.

But the people believed what God had told them, through Jonah, and every one of them repented and turned from his evil ways, and cried mightily unto God, and said, “Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?” And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil ways....and He did it not.” Jonah 2:9-10.

God saved the city at that time, because the people believed His word, and knew that they had sinned greatly, so they ceased their wicked ways and turned to the Lord, and He had mercy upon them.

But not long after, the people of that same city forgot all about the warning that God had given to them., and the grace that He had shown, in not destroying their city, so they went back to their sinful ways.

More than one hundred years after God had spoken to them through Jonah, He spoke again through His prophet Nahum, telling them that judgment was coming upon them and that their beautiful city was to be destroyed; but they did not turn to the Lord, confessing and forsaking their sins, as before.

And although God allowed a long time to pass before He brought the judgment on Nineveh, spoken of by Nahum, yet when God speaks, it will be fulfilled, and the judgment did come.

If you will read the book of Nahum, you will see what terrible judgments were to come upon the city and its inhabitants.

In the first chapter and fourteenth verse, the Lord said, “I will make thy grave, for thou art vile,” and for many hundreds of years God allowed that city to be buried, and no one knew where it was, so, many persons began to doubt whether such a place ever did exist, and skeptics began sneeringly to inquire of the Christian, “Where is your great Nineveh?”

But in the last century the city has been discovered and many things found in it and around it which show the fulfillment of prophecy.

Such was the sad end of this once beautiful city, with its proud and wicked inhabitants who were seeking to make themselves happy apart from God, for in Zeph. 2:15 we read, “This is the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly; that said in her heart, I am, and there is none besides me, how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in!”

And dear children, as God warned Nineveh a long time before he sent the dreadful judgment upon it, so He has warned us, for over eighteen hundred years, that judgment is coming upon—not only a city—but the whole world, and He has given plenty of time for all who will, to escape it.

We read in Acts, 17:30-31 “God now commandeth all men everywhere to repent, because He hath appointed a day in the which He will judge the world in righteousness, by that Man (Jesus) whom He hath ordained.”

He is a righteous God, and cannot allow sin to go unpunished, but He is love as well, so He has provided a way of escape, through Christ having died in the sinner’s place, and all who put their trust in Him will not be judged, because He has borne their sins on the cross, and He can now say, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” But those who will not acknowledge their sins and turn to the Lord, must share in the judgment that is coming. Dear children, which will it be with you?

J. T. A.

ML 07/29/1900

The Warning Unheeded.

I WANT to impress upon the minds of our young readers, the solemnity of not heeding, or disregarding friendly reproof. When I was a little boy about ten years old living in M., a family came along traveling in a wagon. They were moving to another part of the country, and as there was no railroad, they were obliged to travel in a wagon. In this family there was a little boy about my own age, who had a gun, and he was very fond of hunting ducks and geese. And as there was a great deal of this kind of game near our place, he was in the height of his glee for the two days they remained with us to rest their team. But he was very careless with his gun, and handled it as though it were a toy. My mother noticed this, and did not want me to be around him. She told him that a loaded gun was a very dangerous thing, and said he must be careful, specially while around the house, or he would shoot himself or someone else. She also told him she had known some sad accidents to happen from carelessness with guns. But he replied that he was not afraid, and there was no danger, for he had carried a gun almost from his babyhood and was not killed yet. As long as he remained, she repeated her warnings and cautions, but all were unheeded by him. Two days after they had left our place, they were driving along beside a stream, when this little boy saw some ducks, and went to the back end of the wagon to get his gun. The barrel was pointing out, so he pulled it toward him, but the hammer caught in some way, and set it off, and shot him through the stomach. He lived a little while to think of his carelessness, and of all those unheeded warnings. How solemn and true are the words of the wise uttered so long ago:

“He that being often reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” Proverbs 29:1.

Now, dear children, you have often been warned in Sunday school, and elsewhere, about the danger of putting off the salvation of your soul. Death might carry you off. The Lord might come, and then you would be banished to that place of outer darkness, and would have a woeful eternity to think of those warnings and beseechings and loving entreaties of parents, Sunday school teachers and loved ones.

“Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.” Prov. 8:33.

C. C. O.

ML 07/29/1900

Annette's Ragged Pupil.

AS Annette, a bright, happy girl about nine or ten years of age, was returning from school one summer’s afternoon, her path was impeded by the gambols of a dirty, ragged boy, who was jumping over the door-steps and turning head-over-heels on the pavement, and showing perfect indifference to everything but his own enjoyment.

His dirty face showed signs of intelligence, and Annette wondered how he could prefer to put his head where his feet should be.

He was standing upon his head, and before Annette could skip out of his way, another turn brought his feet in contact with her school-bag, and away it flew into the middle of the street.

Annette heard the fall of the books with dismay, and ran to catch them up, whilst the boy was about to run away; but Annette’s good-humored face influenced him to remain.

“I didn’t mean it, Miss,” he said sheepishly. “No, I know you did not,” said Annette kindly, “but why do you like to go on your head?”

“It’s good fun,” returned the boy, repeating the performance with infinite glee.

“Poor boy,” thought Annette, “I wonder if anybody teaches him!” and she looked compassionately at him.

Going closer, she said in a tone of childish simplicity: “Little boy, will you tell me? Do you know anything about Jesus Christ?”

“No, I don’t. Who is He?” said the boy, staring at her with surprise.

“Poor boy! Then you don’t know that He is the Saviour—God’s own Son—who loved us and died to save us, because we are sinners and can’t save ourselves?”

“No, I don’t; I never heard about Him, but I ain’t so bad as Dick and Bill; they is bad, and no mistake.”

“We are all bad in some way,” said Annette, “and I should like to tell you about Jesus Christ. Will you come with me, and I will read to you about Him?”

Leading the way to her father’s house, Annette took the wondering boy into a small, back room, where she eagerly hung up her hat, and took her Bible and sat down on a low stool, telling the boy to sit by her.

Then she began to tell him the Bible is God’s book, and that He has told us in it that He sent His dear Son into the world to die for us, because we were all sinners, and deserved to be punished. Jesus in His great love said He would suffer and die instead of us.

“Now,” said Annette, “if you believe it, and put your trust in Him, you shall be saved and live in glory forever. Poor boy! Will you learn to read? Shall I teach you? Then you could read all the beautiful things for yourself, and I will save up my money to get you a Bible?”

“Yes, I’ll like that. Shall I come tomorrow?” asked the boy eagerly.

“Yes, tomorrow,” replied Annette, delighted at his readiness to come, “but you must learn a text now,” and she taught him, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved,” and after making him repeat it many times, said, “You can go now, aid come again tomorrow.”

As Annette raised her eager eyes from her pupil, she met the gaze of her mother, who was standing in much surprise at the door. Annette sprung into her arms, whilst the boy, rather frightened, ran off into the street.

Upon her mother telling Annette she should have asked her permission first, the little girl said: “O, Mamma, he did not know anything about Jesus Christ!” and then she went on to ask liberty to teach the boy to read.

“You shall teach him, darling, if he is willing to be taught,” replied her mother, after hearing how Annette had first met with her pupil.

The ragged boy came to learn at the same hour next day. This time her mamma was working in the room, whilst Annette and the boy sat together.

“Do you know why my little girl is so pleased?” asked Annette’s mamma, seeing the boy’s gaze of astonishment.

“No, I’m wondering at her all the time,” he replied.

So the lady told him that Annette had given her heart to Jesus—that she had learned to love Him because He had first loved her—that she believed what God said, that “Whosoever believeth on the Son hath everlasting life,” and this had made her so happy that she wanted others to know it too. “This is the reason why she wants to teach you about the Saviour. She wants your sins to be forgiven, and washed away in the blood of Jesus,” said the lady.

“I’m not as bad as Dick Bankes; he is very bad to his mother,” said the boy.

“Oh, how dreadful!” said Annette; “do bring him with you, and I will tell him what the Bible says about it.”

“Maybe he won’t come, but I’ll try.” He did try, and Dick did come, and others also, and the dear little girl spent the happiest hours of her life in telling the poor ragged boys of the loving Saviour, and how He pitied them, bore their sins upon the cross, so that “whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Dear Annette! Having drank of the water of life herself, she wanted others to taste the life-giving stream.

If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus, dear young reader, you, too, may serve Him. You may not be able to do it in the same way that Annette did, but you may be able to give a little book, or to say a word for Him. The Lord says He will reward the gift of a cup of cold water, if it be given in His name, for His sake.

Selected.

“Lord, in my childhood and my youth,

Be Thou my heart’s delight—

And guide me in Thy precious truth,

And keep me day and night.”

ML 07/29/1900

Bible Questions for August.

The answers are to be found in Romans and the first letter of each answer will spell a part of a verse in chapter 6.

1.Give the verse following these words, “There is none righteous, no, not one.”

2.Give the whole of the verse following these words, “If God be for us, who can be against us?”

3.Who was it that said, “Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved”?

4.Give the whole of the verse containing these words, “The law is holy.”

5.Of whom was it said, “He believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness”?

6.Give the rest of this verse, “To all that be in Rome, beloved bf God, called to be saints.”

7.Give the whole of the verse containing these words, “Unto all and upon all them that believe.”

8.Give the remaining part of this verse, “But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise.”

9.Give the first part of the verse containing these words, “That is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.”

10.Give the whole verse following these words, “I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.”

11.Give the verse before these words, “Let us not therefore judge one another anymore.”

12.Give the remaining part of this verse, “I am sure that, when I come unto you.”

13.Give the whole of the verse following these words, “We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

14.Give the whole of the verse following these words, “Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”

15.Give the whole of the verse coming before these words, “Ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit.”

16.Who was it that said,

“Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven?”

17.Who was it that said, “I am left alone, and they seek my life”?

18.Give the rest of the verse beginning with these words, “For it is written.”

19.Give the whole of the verse following this, “The way of peace have they not known.”

20.Give the rest of this verse, “How shall they preach except they be sent? as it is written.”

Answers to Questions of June 3rd.

1. John 16:3.

2. 11:14.

3. 19:3.

4. 19:15.

5. 4:34.

6. 1:29.

7. 8:31.

8. 4:4.

9. 18:40.

10. 19:3.

11. 1:3.

12. 18:1.

13. 3:19.

14. 20:27.

“And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote Him with their hands.” John 19:3.

ML 08/05/1900

In Every Thing Give Thanks.

If you look closely at our picture today, dear children, you will see that the old lady has her head bowed, her eyes closed, and her hands folded upon her knee, while her husband, who has reverently taken off his cap, is ready, with hand uplifted, to give thanks for the simple meal that is spread before them. Even the dog seems to understand as he sits quietly waiting, until the giving of thanks is ended.

I wonder how many of my little readers have thought about this giving of thanks, and how many of them think it is a necessary thing! What does God say about it? He tells us it is His will that, we should give thanks in everything. (2 Thess. 5:18.) But many little boys and girls eat their breakfasts, dinners, and suppers, day after day, and never think of lifting their hearts in gratitude and thanksgiving to God. Do you think He is pleased with this? Ah! no, for He would have our hearts filled with gladness and thanksgiving when He gives good things to us. And not only should we thank Him for our food, but also for our clothing and for home and shelter and parents and friends. Do not forget, God says in everything give thanks.

We little know what blessings will flow from our acknowledgement of God in this way. Let me give you one little incident to show you what I mean. A Christian, who was away from home and was taking dinner at a Hotel, bowed his head, as his custom was, before beginning to eat. I don’t know how many people saw him do this, nor what those who did see him may have thought of it, but I know that God looked down and was well-pleased. And there was also a poor Indian who saw this act and it led him to conclude that this man was a Christian, because he bowed his head and gave thanks to God before he ate. This Indian had been turned to the Lord, and knew Him as his Saviour, but there were questions that troubled him and he was seeking help, so he waited until the Christian was through with his dinner that he might then seek an interview with him. The opportunity was soon given, and the Christian gladly listened to the Indian’s questions, and was able to help him much. And the blessing did not stop there; it flowed out to others.

Let us remember, dear children, that we honor God, in giving thanks to Him in everything. And He has said, “Them that honor Me, I will honor.”

The greatest and best of all gifts, I have not yet mentioned—that is, God’s beloved Son. How many of you have thanked God that He has given His Son, that you might have life through Him?

ML 08/05/1900

The Forerunner of Jesus.

JOHN the Baptist has been called the forerunner of Jesus, in allusion, no doubt, to an ancient custom of kings having heralds go before them to prepare their way.

John’s birth, as well as that of Jesus, was announced beforehand by the angel Gabriel. And John was to hold a position of greatness not surpassed by any who had gone before him. Gabriel told John’s father, that he should be great, and should drink neither wine nor strong drink, and should be filled with the Holy Ghost from his birth, and should turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord, and go before Him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. (Luke 1:15-17.)

John was the son of a priest, named Zacharias, and his remarkable birth as foretold by Gabriel was well known. But he was not brought up in wealth and luxury, and his greatness was not derived from association with great men of the world. He was brought up in the wilderness, or deserts, in a wild and thinly settled country, where the people were poor. He wore the rough garment of the prophet, made of camel’s hair, and this was fastened around him by a girdle of leather. His food was such as that poor, barren country could produce —locusts and wild honey.

This strangely dressed man came into “the wilderness of Judea,” and “all the country about Jordan,” preaching, and saying, “Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He was full of the Spirit, and spoke with great power, and great multitudes from all the country around came to hear him. A great King had been born in Judea, and was about to be presented to Israel, and John was preparing a people to receive Him. He called on these people to repent of their sins, and they were baptized in Jordan, confessing their sins. The nation had long been full of wickedness, and the people were not fit to receive the King God was sending them, unless they repented. The King was there, and was ready to establish His kingdom in Israel, if they would receive Him, but He wanted a righteous people, and John was sent beforehand to prepare them by preaching repentance, so that they might receive forgiveness of sins.

But there were many wicked men in Jerusalem among the Pharisees and Saducees, and among the rulers, who had no heart to receive the King about whom John was preaching, and John called these a race of vipers, and warned them that the new King would execute judgment against those whose repentance was not real. The trees that did not bring forth good fruit were to be hewn down and cast into the fire. The barn floor was to be cleansed, and the chaff burnt up with unquenchable fire. So would it be for all those who did not truly repent. John spoke very plainly and faithfully in warning sinners of coming judgment, and he afterwards lost his life because he dared to reprove Herod, the wicked king who was then reigning in the land. But John was faithful unto death, and will have a martyr’s crown, while the wicked king who caused his death, if he died in his sins, will have his portion in the unquenchable fire.

Dear young reader, have you heeded the call to repentance? Have you turned to God, confessing your sins? Remember you cannot have a place in God’s kingdom above, unless you confess and forsake your sins. But if you turn to God with repentance, and believe in Jesus, the Saviour, and own Him as your Lord, you will be forgiven and saved, and will have a place with Christ in His kingdom, when He reigns.

A.H.R.

ML 08/05/1900

"Our Father."

I WAS walking along a street one evening, feeling very sad about the unkind treatment of one Christian towards another, when my attention was called to the eager endeavors of a little girl to stop some child from teasing her baby brother, but without success. At last she called out, in a tone of relief and authority, “Our father’s in the door.” The lesson went to my heart at once. So I want to tell you, dear children, to always remember, that God, who now through Jesus Christ is our Father, if we believe, is watching us, and notices how we treat each other, and how we suffer.

Remember also these three things; 1, the relationship, God is our Father; 2, the love such a Father has for His dear children; 3, the power with which He is able to shield, protect and care for His own.

The little girl felt quite sure her difficulties were all over, when she caught sight of her father standing in the doorway. And if we realize that a kind, loving and all-powerful Father is ever watching over us, our difficulties, too, will vanish away.

E. M. G.

ML 08/05/1900

Washing Sheep.

MANY a time when I was a boy I have helped to wash a flock of sheen in just about the way the picture shows. We would drive the bleating flock to the creek, and into a pen made on the bank, then catch them one by one and throw them into the water to the washers. When well washed they were let out in another place.

Do you see those nice sheep out under the trees? They have been washed. Do you see the one in the water trying to get back into the pen? A boy with a stick keeps him out. He has been washed or will be, and must go the other way, past the man with the long pole, to his own company. Do you see what all this means? You must be washed too, and then, though your sins were red like crimson they shall be as wool. Though like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Nothing can do this for you but the blood of Jesus. Now children, when Jesus washes you, don’t be like that sheep trying to get back into the pen! Don’t try to find your company and pleasures among those who are not washed, I’d rather be like that one which seems hardly able to get up the bank. She is wet and heavy, but she is washed, and will soon be at rest in that clean and happy company.

“Flee also youthful lusts, but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” 2 Tim. 2:22.

W. D. C.

“Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.” Ps. 51:7.

ML 08/12/1900

"Faith Is Happiness."

SUCH was the answer I received from a little boy in reply to the question, “What is faith?” which I had given to a large Sunday school class. The lesson was that beautiful story of the Lord Jesus healing the Centurion’s servant. beginning, Matt. 8:5. I do not know in what way the little fellow connected the two—faith and happiness— in his own mind ; but I am sure it can easily be shown that they do go hand in hand. Let us see: “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” In order to please God, then, we must have faith; but is not this a very cheering discovery to find from His own word that there is a way in which we can please God? Now, if you turn to that lesson again, Matt. 8 you will see, (ver. 8.) that the Centurion takes his true place, “I am not worthy.” There he gives the Lord His true place — “Speak the word only and my servant shall be healed.” Faith ever says, God is over all. Faith sees that the Lord Jesus put away all our sins by dying on the cross. As you read this paper, can you say, “Jesus died for me”? Here is the refuge from judgment, and therefore the place of real happiness—sheltered by the blood of the cross.

We may well believe that that Centurion’s house was one of the happiest of homes that day and many days after. The dear servant who was “ready to die” a short time before, was then raised up and able to attend to his accustomed duties.

What happiness crowned the Centurion’s faith!

But do the Scriptures tell us in so many words what faith is? I believe they do see Heb. 11:1. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for.” God promises us something; at once we look forward to it, we hope for it; but because it is. God who has promised, we know there can be no failure: in Him is yea and amen. So faith enters into the joy of God’s promises now. Faith dwells with delight on all God says. Who will say that faith and happiness are not closely linked? No doubt the very moment the Centurion saw the Lord Jesus approaching his house, his faith saw the servant restored; not a shadow of a doubt crossed his mind. May it be ours to know all the happiness, daily, that faith gives.

R. M.

ML 08/12/1900

Which Will You Do?

I REMEMBER a story I heard when I was a boy. It was about a little girl who had been left alone in the house. Her mother, who was out in the yard, heard the child screaming, as if in great pain and terror. Running into the house she saw her little girl wrapped in flames, her dress having caught fire from the stove. The mother thought only of her suffering child, and through her efforts the flames were soon extinguished, the little girl escaping with a few slight burns.

But the poor mother was sadly burned; and when she recovered, her once fair face was covered with unsightly scars.

Time passed on; the little girl grew to be a young woman. One day when in a large store with her mother, she met a friend; this friend asked her if this woman was her mother. She replied, “No.” How sad to think she would deny the mother whose face had been marred in her efforts to save her life! Should she not have been proud of every scar on that dear mother’s face?

I think I hear some of my little readers say, “For shame!” Oh I but wait a moment children, those of you who believe in Jesus, Have you been asked by one of your friends if you were a Christian, and have you answered, “No,” because you were afraid your friend would laugh at you? Did you have a chance yesterday to tell some friend of Jesus and His love, and did you do it? Did you meet some children on the way to Sunday school and ask them to go with you?

If you did speak of Jesus as the sinner’s Friend, dear children, if you did bring some little ones with you to Sunday school, you will receive blessing from God, both now and in that coming day, for He always sees what is done for Him; and He never forgets.

If you did not speak for Him, if you did not ask the little ones to come to Sunday school, I would ask if you are proud of the One whose hands and feet were pierced for you; whose brow was pressed with the thorny crown; whose side was pierced with the soldier’s spear?

I ask you again, Are you proud of Him?

You sometimes read of little children who love to speak for Jesus, and you wish that you were like them, but you fail. Do you know why? It is because you are trying in your own strength. If you believe in Jesus and wish to be more like Him, go to Him in prayer and ask Him to make you more like Himself. Do not ask once only, but every time you pray, and may that be very often! If you speak for Him, and do all you can to please Him, you will receive a reward; but if you go with those who do not love the Lord Jesus, and enjoy their company, their sports, and their games, you deny Him, as the girl denied her mother.

Listen to the words of Jesus in Matt. 10:32-33, “Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny Me before men, him will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven.”

Which will you do?

F. C. T.

ML 08/12/1900

The Baptism of Jesus.

WE LEARN from Luke 4:23, that Jesus was, about thirty years old when He was baptized.

Those who received the teaching of John the Baptist, and repented of their sing; were baptized of him in the river Jordan. These were the people that he as the forerunner, was preparing for the coming King. They confessed their sins and were baptized with the baptism of repentance, and were thus separated in spirit and position from those in the nation who continued in their sins. When Jesus came where John was baptizing, and saw those people confessing their sins, He also desired to be baptized, not because He had any sins to confess, for He had none, but because He desired to place Himself in the company of those who owned they were sinners. Those who confessed their sins were the truly upright ones; and Jesus wanted to be with such. They were the “saints” and “excellent” of the earth, spoken of in Ps. 16, in whom Jesus found His delight. And they are the ones who will have a place in His kingdom, when He reigns. Jesus by being baptized of John, placed Himself in this company, and thus expressed His approval of what they were doing.

Those who confessed their sins were also the ones upon whom God could look with favor, and whom He could pardon and bless, not because they were not sinners, but because they showed uprightness of heart in confessing the truth as to their sinful condition. Christ became the Saviour of such, and would bear their sins on the cross.

When Jesus placed Himself with that repentant company, in order that He might take up their cause and lead them into blessing, even though He must suffer for their sins on the cross, God was well pleased with Him and sealed Him with the Holy Ghost, anointing Him for the work He was to do. As Jesus came up from the water, “the heavens were opened unto Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him: and, lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matt. 3:16, 17.

This, my dear young reader was a great sight, —a great multitude of people confessing their sins, and heaven opening to Jesus, and expressing delight ill Him, at the moment He placed Himself in a position where He could take up their cause and meet all their need!

Now let me ask you a question. There were two companies that day at the Jordan, those who confessed their sins, and those who did not. To which company do you belong? We find in Luke 7:30, that the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, not being baptized of John, God, speaking through John, had called on them to repent of their sins, so that they might receive the blessings promised through Christ; but they rejected God’s counsel, and lost the blessings. Will you, dear young reader, do like these Pharisees and lawyers? Or, will you confess your sins to God, and receive the blessing He delights to bestow? Remember, if you are a sinner, you must come to God as a sinner. If you come pretending you are righteous, you come with a lie, and God will not receive you. Come, then, as you are, a sinner, and He will receive you, and pardon you through Christ, His beloved Son, who has died for sinners, and in whom God is well pleased.

A. H. R.

ML 08/12/1900

"Because I Behave Well."

A CHRISTIAN once asked a little boy, three or four years of age, if he was one of the Lord’s little ones. Freddie did not know whether he was, but thought he would like to be, so his friend tried to put very simply and carefully before him the way of salvation, telling him of what Jesus had done in His love, and how He had drunk the cup of God’s wrath for Freddie’s sins, so that Freddie would not have to drink it. Illustrations also were given to make it very simple and plain. Little Freddie seemed to be very attentive to all that was said.

A few days later, this same friend meeting him, said: “And do you think now that you are the Lord’s, Freddie?” Freddie promptly replied, “Yes.” “And what makes you think so,” asked his friend.

“Because I behave well,” was the answer. Now I would like to ask the little readers of this paper if they think Freddie’s answer was right; and if not, could someone write a little letter for the paper telling how one may know that he is the Lord’s?

“The Saviour is coming,

The moment is near;

The bright Star of morning

Will quickly appear.

Then will His beloved ones

With swiftness arise,

And meet their blest Saviour,

With joy, in the skies.”

ML 08/12/1900

The Doctor and His Sick Patient.

WHAT do you see in the picture today, dear children? It looks like a doctor visiting a sick patient, doesn’t it? What a funny looking little doctor he is, with his spectacles down at the end of his nose! As he slightly stoops he feels his patient’s pulse with one hand, while in the other he holds his watch and very gravely counts the pulse beats. In his haste he has not even taken time to remove his hat!

And what a funny patient, too! Puss lying quietly in the lap of her little mistress who is holding her very carefully and tenderly. The hobby horse is thrown aside; no care can be bestowed upon him now! All faces look sober as if the case was a grave one.

Dear children, this, you know, is but a picture, and is a picture that represents some little folks at their innocent play; but it speaks to us of sickness and death, which are both sad realities. There are few homes indeed into which sickness and death have not entered.

God gives us a most solemn word when He says: “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”

There are two things to which I would like to call your attention, in this verse. The first is the judgment which it tells us comes after death. I want to tell you from God’s word, dear young believer, that Jesus has suffered for your sins; He has borne the judgment for you, and you will never have to come into judgment. It is only those, who do not believe in Jesus who will have to stand before the dreadful judgment bar, and hear God’s sentence of condemnation against them because of their sins.

But there is something else I would have you notice in connection with this verse. While God says it is appointed unto men once to die, He does not say it is appointed to all men to die. One day we had this verse in Sunday school and were speaking of death being appointed unto men. One of our little boys held up his hand. His teacher said, “Well, Gerald what have you to say about it?” Gerald thoughtfully replied, “We will not all die, for Jesus is coming.” Was not that a nice answer for a little boy to give? He had been learning that God had appointed to man to die, but he knew that Jesus was coming and that when He comes He will take all His own to Himself, and they will not have to go through death. Little Gerald, thinking about this, knew that all would not have to die.

If Jesus comes soon, how many of my little readers will go with Him and never have to go through death? Or if the Lord tarry, and some of you die, will it be to fall asleep in Jesus and waken in the glory; or will it be for you to pass on to that awful judgment seat of Christ, where you will be judged according to your works and then be cast into the lake of fire!

ML 08/19/1900

How the Little Ones Were Won.

WHEN Dr. Bettelheim went as a missionary to the Loo-choo Islands which belong to Japan, he was at first badly treated. They tried to prevent him from landing, and threw his goods into the sea. But when the ship had sailed away and left him there among them, they seemed to think he was some superior being whom they must not kill, though they could easily have done so.

When he had built a hut, the government had eight huts built around his, and put five persons in each, so that he should be thoroughly watched. But this turned out to be of great use to the missionary. From hearing these spies he learned to speak the language, and was at length able to preach the gospel to them.

When Dr. B., his wife, and little daughter went into the streets, all the women and children ran away and hid themselves, and though they longed to be allowed to speak to them, they could not get the opportunity. At length they hit upon this plan. They built a brick oven—the first that was made in Loo-choo—and Mrs. B. made some nice sweet cakes and baked them in their new oven. Then she used to fill a bag with these cakes, and when they went for a walk they would drop the cakes, or throw them to the children.

Now most children like nice sweet cakes, and the Japanese children used to pick up these cakes and became fond of them, and you can easily suppose that the children soon got over their fears, and instead of running away from the missionary’s wife, would watch for her coming, for the sake of the cakes she dropped. But it was a long time before the children would allow themselves to be touched. Dr. B. said he dated the success of his mission from the first kiss he received from a little Japanese child; but that was not until he had been there five years! From that time the work went slowly on.

Surely children at all parts of the world whether white, or brown, or black must be very much alike; they will all make friends with those who can give them anything that they enjoy. A little boy I know used to say, whenever a friend of his went to see him, What have you brought me? or, What have you got for me? Well, here’s good news for us all to know. God is the greatest giver there ever was! It is true He does say, “My son, give Me thine heart,” but then He gives us something far better, He gives us life everlasting.

My Little Friend.

ML 08/19/1900

The Temptation of Jesus in the Wilderness.

THE temptation of Jesus took place just after His baptism. “Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil.” (Luke 4:1, 2.)

The place where Adam, the first man, was tempted was in the garden of Eden, where he had everything that heart could wish, and where God had withheld from him the fruit of only one tree. The place where Jesus was tempted was in the wilderness, and among the wild beasts, where there was not even bread, to eat. Adam did not resist the devil, but yielded to the temptation, and fell. Jesus resisted the devil, and gained the victory over him, proving also that He was able to deliver those who had fallen under the devil’s power through sin.

In Matt. 4, we are told of three different ways by which the devil tried to overcome Jesus. I would like to have you notice these, and see how Jesus met the devil, and overcame him.

Jesus was forty days in the wilderness, among the wild beasts, and all those days He did not eat anything. I am sure you will not wonder that Jesus became hungry after fasting forty days. The devil knew this and tried to get Him to make bread out of stones, to satisfy His hunger. “If thou be the Son of God,” he said, “command that these stones be made bread.” Well, perhaps you will say, what harm would there have been in this? There would have been none at all, if God had told Him to do so. But do you know, dear young reader, a that men should never do anything that God does not tell them to do? The life of man should be a life of entire obedience to God. If we do anything without having God’s word for it, we do our own wills, and this is sin. Now Jesus would not act without His Father’s will, and so would not turn the stones into bread, because His Father had not told Him to do so. He said to the devil,

“It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matt. 4:4.

The proper life for man is to live by obedience to the word of God, and not merely by the bread which feeds the body. Jesus lived by the word of God, and not by bread only. The devil wanted Him to act without God’s word, to satisfy His hunger; but He would not. He could suffer hunger without sinning, but He could not act without God, and He did not. Thus the devil was, defeated.

In the second temptation the devil took Jesus to a pinnacle of the temple, and tried to get Him to throw Himself down, to see if God would keep His word, where it is said, “He shall give His angels charge concerning Thee,” etc. But Satan misquoted the Scriptures, and tried to put a false meaning on the passage, and Jesus answered, “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” And thus again the devil was defeated.

In his third effort to overcome Jesus, the devil took Him “up into an exceeding high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and said unto Him, All these will I give Thee, if Thou wilt fall down and worship me.” What a temptation! All the kingdoms of the world! Would it not be worthwhile to worship Satan, if He could get all these? No; Jesus would not take the kingdoms from Satan at all, and He would not worship such a wicked being. He will get the kingdoms of the world by and by, but it will be from His Father, and not from Satan. And His title to them will be, not the worship of the devil, but His work of atonement on the cross, which is the only ground of blessing for a scene that has fallen under the power of Satan through sin. Unmoved by all the devil’s wiles, He said to him, “Get thee hence, Satan; for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” Then the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him. Thus if Satan had found an easy prey in Adam, he had not found it so in Jesus. He was completely vanquished in every attempt to overcome the blessed Son of God. Jesus proved that He had power to bind the strong man and spoil his goods, and to deliver those whom Satan had taken captive.

Now, I want you to notice, that the only weapon Jesus used, with Which to defeat Satan, was “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” He always answered, “It is written,” and then quoted the word of God against him. This is the way Jesus resisted the devil. And if you, my young reader, would be able to resist the devil, you must first believe in Jesus as your Saviour, and submit’ to His authority. In this way you will be delivered from the power of Satan; and then, under the guidance of Jesus, you can resist the devil too, by using the word of God against him, when he would tempt you to sin. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Jas. 4:7.

A. H. R.

ML 08/19/1900

Little Things.

Mark 10:14. 1 Cor. 1:27-29.

The little birds that sing and play

Amidst the branches of the trees,

In every accent seem to say,

“We’re happy, if but Him we please.”

The little lambs that skip and run

Across the fields of shaded grass,

Are happy in the morning sun,

While summer days so swiftly pass.

The little brook that bubbles by,

Speaks of the Shepherd’s tender care,

Whose goodness all their needs supply,

And gives them food and light and air.

The little leaves upon the trees,

Drink in the sun and rain and air;

They nod and bend to every breeze,

And speak of Him who put them there.

The little children ‘round Him pressed;

He took them in His arms of love;

While others frowned, He only “blessed”

And made them fit for Him above.

‘Twas little children sang His praise,

When in His Kingly state He rode;

Yea, rocks and hills, their voice may raise,

To sing hosannas to the Lord.

Then little children ne’er forget

The ONE who loved you unto death.

When trials come, ne’er frown nor fret,

But praise Him with your latest breath.

G. O. B.

ML 08/19/1900

The Catcher Caught.

WHAT a woe-begone face poor pusy has! She has been meddling, and now is caught by a crab, and does not know how to free herself from his tight grasp, and is crying out in pain.

She has no scruples about catching the little mice and tormenting them and finally killing them. Now she herself is taken in a trap!

May be my dear little readers will think there is no lesson in this for them, but I think there is; at least there is a very important principle involved in what the picture brings before us; that is, what we do to others will return upon our own heads. This is shown to us in a very solemn way in the prophecy of Obadiah. In the fifteenth verse of the only chapter given, you will find these words, “As thou hast done, it shall be done to thee; thy reward shall return upon thine own head.”

You may do many things, even in childhood, that will be brought back to you in later life, and you will then feel the sorrow of it; and your sorrow will most likely come in the very line of things in which you have given sorrow to others; as, thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee, is what God says. Oh! how very, very careful this should make us, to avoid all wrong ways. And, again, if our ways are only kindness and love, they will return in showers of blessing on our head.

I hope you will all seek, by the grace of God, to be kind, tender-hearted, forgiving, gentle, forbearing and good.

There are some who sow strife and discord; there are others who sow peace and love. Which will it be with you? “Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God. R.

ML 08/26/1900

None Other Name.

A FEW persons were standing on a bridge in London, around a blind man who was reading in a Bible en Relief. A gentleman on his way home from business, was brought by curiosity to come near the poor blind man who was reading aloud in Acts 4. He had just lost the place, and while he was trying to find it again with his fingers, he was repeating the last sentence he had read— “None other name—None other name—None other name!” A few were smiling, at the embarrassment of the blind man; but the gentlemen went home deeply moved. For some time he had been convinced that he was a sinner, and in many different ways had been trying to obtain peace; but religious services, good resolutions, giving up of bad habits, all were useless to relieve his conscience, and enable him to rejoice in God.

The words of the blind man were ringing in his soul like solemn music— “None other name!” When he was at home, and after he had retired, these words like evening bells were still heard, “None other name—None other name—None other name!” And when he awoke, these words were again ringing in his ears— “None other name—None other name—None other name!” At last through the grace of God this harmony penetrated his soul, and he awoke to a new life to find that, “To him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” Rom. 4:45. “I see, I see now,” he exclaimed, “I have tried to be saved through my own works, my repentance, my prayers, my reforms, and all were absolutely useless: I see my error, Jesus alone can save, I will look unto Him; ‘Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is none other name—None other name—None other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12.

“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God: that ye may KNOW that ye HAVE eternal life.” 1 John 5:13.

“For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed.” “For Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Rom. 10:11,13.

R. R.

ML 08/26/1900

Jesus Calling Disciples.

WE find that after John was put in prison Jesus went into Galilee, and preached the gospel of the kingdom of God. He told the people that the time was fulfilled, and the kingdom of God was at hand, and called on them to repent, and believe the good news. John the Baptist, the King’s forerunner, had been doing this, but Herod had shut him up in prison, and now the King Himself began to tell the people in Galilee about the kingdom that was to be set up. The leaders of the people would reject Him, as well as John, but still He went on, and preached the good news. God would give Him some followers, even though many would not have Him to reign over them. And if, on account of His rejection, the kingdom was not established in Jerusalem, He would not fail to bless those who believed on Him, and became His followers. Indeed He would bestow upon them greater blessings than they could possess in an earthly kingdom. So He went on, preaching, and gathering disciples to Himself, some of whom were to be used in the great work of preaching the gospel.

Four of these are mentioned in Mark 1:16-20. These four were all fishers. They had boats and nets, and made their living by catching fish in the sea of Galilee. But Jesus was going to make them fishers of another kind. He would make them “fishers of men.” Instead of catching fish in the sea of Galilee, they would cast the gospel net into the sea of the nations, and catch men. That is, they would go out into the world, and by the preaching of the gospel would win souls for Jesus.

Two of these men were Simon and Andrew. They were brothers, and were working together at their fishing. “And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed Him.”

Then there were two others, a little distance away, who were also brothers. These were James and John. They were with their father Zebedee in the ship, mending their nets. These also Jesus called, and they left their father, and went after Him.

These four first became followers of Jesus, and afterwards Jesus appointed them apostles, and preachers of the gospel. They believed in Jesus, and received His teaching, and then preached the good news to others.

Now, I wonder if some of my young readers have heard the voice of Jesus calling them, and saying, “Follow me.” Ah! yes, He calls you by the gospel, and would have you follow Him. His desire is to save you, and bless you; and He has many wonderful things to reveal to you out of God’s word. Now, will you follow Him, like Simon Peter and Andrew, his brother, and the two brothers, James and John? Jesus will greatly bless you if you follow Him, and you will be gainers for time and eternity. And perhaps some of you who read these words will have it put in your hearts to become fishers of men. Oh! how blessed this would be—not only to receive the good news yourselves, but to go out to the perishing, and tell them of Jesus, and the way of salvation, through, faith in Him, and thus to win them to Jesus, and be used of God in turning them from death to life, so that they may not perish, but have a portion with Jesus in eternal glory.

A. H. R.

ML 08/26/1900

"I've Heard of Him."

WHILE passing along the street one beautiful, morning, my attention was arrested by a young man, who, although bearing upon his face the impress of health and youthful vigor, was, nevertheless, totally blind. I felt led to speak to him about the Lord Jesus as the One who could cause light to shine into his soul, giving him to obtain eternal life, by believing. His answer was, “Yes, I’ve heard of Him.”

Oh, but was that enough, reader, do you think? No, for eternal life is given, not through hearing alone, but by believing: “He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life.” John 5:24.

As soon as blind Bartimeus heard of Jesus, he believed in Him as the One able to restore his sight— “And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.” Mark 10:46-52.

Job had heard of the Lord “by the hearing of the ear;” “but now,” he says, “mine eye seeth Thee. Wherefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:5-6.

Oh, have you heard of Jesus, have you believed Him? Have your eyes been opened to see Him in all His beauty; and yourself in all your vileness?

G. B. E.

ML 08/26/1900

"I Shall Be There."

A LADY on board a homebound steamer noticed d barefoot little girl playing about the deck. She spoke to her, and said, “Where do you come from, my dear?” “From San Francisco,” she replied. “And where are you going?” asked the lady. “Oh, to England.” After further conversation the lady said, “Do you love the Lord Jesus?” “Who is He?” said the little girl, “I don’t know Him.” The lady took her aside and told her the story, of His birth, sufferings, and death. Tears stood in the little girls eyes, showing that her heart had been touched, by what she had heard. “But,” added the lady, “He is coming again soon for all those who love Him, that they may be with Him forever.” When leaving the vessel the lady waved her goodby, to her little friend, who in reply, pointed upward to the sky and said, “I shall be there! I shall be there!” Will all our dear little readers be there?

E. B. H.

ML 08/26/1900

Riding Upon a White Pony.

I KNEW a little girl, whom the Lord Jesus took away from this world to be with Himself, when she was about four years old. Though she was so young, she showed that she knew in her heart that Jesus died for her. This was seen in some of her little ways, and told in many of her simple wards. I am not, however, going to tell you more about these. There is only one thing which I now want to make known to you respecting her.

A few months before this dear child fell asleep in Jesus, she said to a kind friend who used to take care of her, “I’m going soon to be with Jesus; and I shall ride upon a white pony.” Her friend told her that this was a strange thing to say, and asked her what she meant by it. After some enquiry, she found out the child’s meaning. Her friends, being believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, loved the Word of God, and a chapter of it used to be read in the family every day. They had lately been reading in the book of Revelation, and the child had noticed that it was said, in the nineteenth chapter, that Jesus sat upon a white horse, and that “the armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.” She had heard it said that these were they who believed in Jesus; and as she knew in her heart that she was a little believer in Him, she thought that she would form one of that glorious company who should ride with Him upon white horses. But, being only a little girl; she supposed that she should not have a great horse, but a little one; and this was the way in which she got her idea that she should ride upon a white pony. Although she made a mistake, does it not show how attentively she listened to the reading of the word of God, and afterwards thought about it in her childish way?

ML 08/26/1900

Bible Questions for September.

Rewards will be given (D. V.) for correct answers received until May, 1901, to those not getting help from others or concordance.

The answers are to be found in the 1St Epistle to the Corinthians, and the first letter of each answer will spell what Paul said he delivered first of all unto them.

1.Who was “that Spiritual Rock that followed them”?

2.Give the rest of this verse, “That according as it is written”—

3.Give the rest of this verse, “And that He was buried, and that He”—

4.Give the verse following these words, “Are ye not my work in the Lord?”

5.What household did Paul say he baptized?

6.Give the rest of this verse, “After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying” —

7.Give the whole verse containing these words, “If the world shall be judged by you,”

8.Give the rest of this verse, “So also is the resurrection of the dead.”

9.At what place was Paul to tarry until Pentecost?

10.What is the last enemy that shall be destroyed?

11.Give the verse containing these words, “Therefore glorify God in your body.”

12.Give the rest of this verse, “O death where is thy sting?”

13.Give the rest of the verse containing these words, “For the day shall declare it, because it shall he”—

14. Give the verse containing these words, “He that ploweth should plow in hope.”

15.Give the whole verse in which these words are found, “Let every one of you lay by him in store.”

16.Give the verse before this one, “Beareth all things, believeth all things,” etc.

17.Give the words following these, “But one receiveth the prize.”

18.Give the rest of this verse, “What is it then?”

19.Give the verse following these words, “All the members rejoice with it.”

20.Give the verse following this, “Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you.”

Answers to Questions of July 1St.

1. “Theophilus.” Acts 1:1.

2. “Have ye received the,” etc., 19:2.

3.“Ye men of Israel.” etc. 3:12.

4.“Philip.” 8:29.

5.“Repent therefore of” etc., 8:22.

6.“Alexandria.” 18:24.

7.“Ye men of Galilee,” etc. 1:11.

8.“Ethiopia.” 8:27.

9.“Rhoda.” 12:13.

10.“If ye have judged me to” etc., 16:15.

11.“Igaul.” 9:4.

12.“Herod.” 12:1.

13.“Except it be for this,”etc. 24:21.

14.“Ananias.” 5:3.

15.“Rome.” 28:16.

16.“Damascus.” 9:27.

“Thy prayer is heard.” Acts 10:31.

ML 09/02/1900

"I May Be Dead Tomorrow."

An earnest Christian Doctor one day called to see an old man that he had frequently visited before. Many a time had Dr. S. spoken faithfully to old John and his wife about their souls’ salvation; but apparently without result.

Old John listened attentively, and agreed to the truth set before him; but seemed always to avoid coming to the point.

He would willingly admit that he was a sinner, and that he stood in need of God’s salvation. Mt would even declare his intention of someday seeking the Saviour. He wished to be saved, indeed, but simply to escape the punishment of hell. He intended to prepare for heaven, but would put off till what seemed to him “a more convenient season.”

Old John was suffering from an attack of bronchitis. His life was not in danger; but he felt painfully weak and ill.

Dr. S. made the necessary inquiries, and, after promising to get some medicine ready, when called for, he was about to leave, when John’s wife inquired: “When must John take the medicine, sir?”

“I will put the directions on the label,” replied Dr. S.; then, with a smile, he turned to the invalid and said, “Let me see; you are not very ill; suppose you begin to take the medicine in a month from today.”

“A month from today, sir!” cried both at once, in astonishment.

“Yes—why not? Is that too soon?” “Too soon! why, sir, I may be dead then!” said John.

“That is true; but you must remember, you really are not very bad yet. Still, perhaps you had better begin to take it in a week.”

“But, sir,” cried John in great perplexity; “I mightn’t live a week.”

“Of course you may not, John; but very likely you will, and the medicine will be in the house; it will keep, and if you should find yourself getting worse, you could take some. I shan’t charge anything for it. If you should feel worse tomorrow even, you might begin then.”

“Sir, I may be dead tomorrow! I hope you won’t be angry with me, nor think me ungrateful to you, as you have always been so kind to me; but you know, sir, I don’t want to get worse; and though I know the medicine is good, it will do me no good while it’s in the bottle; and it does seem to me, sir, ‘tis going against all reason to put off taking it:”

“When would you propose to begin then, John?”

“Well, sir, I thought you’d tell me to begin today.”

“Begin today by all means,” said Dr. S., kindly. “I only wanted to show you how false your own reasoning is, when you put off taking the medicine, which the Great Physician has provided for your sin-sick soul. Just think how long you have neglected the remedy He has provided. For years you have turned away from the Lord Jesus. You have said to yourself, ‘next week,’ or ‘next year,’ or ‘when I am on my deathbed, I will seek the Lord;’ any time rather than the present. And yet the present is the only time that you are sure of. God’s offer is only for ‘today.’ ‘Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’ I need not tell you how ready the Lord Jesus is to receive you; how His precious blood was shed for you. You have the medicine, so to speak, in your hands; but, to use your own argument, it will do you no good unless you take it; and it is foolish to put this off, even until tomorrow.”— Selected.

“Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Prov. 27: 1.

ML 09/02/1900

"If I Go....I Will Come Again"

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

What words of love and grace! —

Words spoken by the Saviour,

Within a quiet place,

When He and His disciples

Were in that upper room

‘Twas just before He entered

The depths of Calvary’s gloom.

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

My Father’s house above

Has many blissful mansions—

Abodes of joy and love.

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

For I am going there;

A place in fadeless glory,

For you I shall prepare.

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

For though I go away,

I’ll come again and take you

To realms of endless day.

Now though our Lord is absent,

We hear those words of love,

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

Still ringing from above.

And though the night seems dreary,

And long may seem His stay—

“Let not your heart be troubled;”

He’ll come without delay.

“Let not your heart be troubled,”

Are words of comfort sweet,

That cheer the heart in sorrow,

Until above we meet.

C. C.C.

ML 09/02/1900

God Feedeth Them.

LOOK at the sweet little birds on the branches among the pretty flowers, and down at the water’s edge! How many are there of them? One, two, three, four, five—as many as you have fingers on one hand! Yes, and there is the reflection of one in the water! How contented and happy they all look! They have no thought of care. They do not in summer lay by in store for the winter as the bees, the ants, the squirrels and many other creatures do.

Who gives them their food? Who cares for them?

You will, no doubt, answer, “It is God who cares for the little birds,” and that is quite right. I would like to have you turn to Matt. 6:26, and read these words “Behold the fowls of the air; for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?” Now turn to Luke 12:24 and read; “Consider the ravens; for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them; how much more are ye better than the fowls?”

Are not these verses beautiful? If you will turn to them in your own Testament and read them, I think they will be precious to you. Take time to think a little about them when you read. There’s no sowing, no reaping for the birds of the air; no gathering into barns, no storing up of food. No, these things are not needed, for God feedeth them.

But notice, God calls special attention to the raven; He says, “Consider the ravens”; and in the book of Job, He speaks of providing for the raven his food, and in Psalms of giving food “to the young ravens which cry.” Why does God speak so often of feeding the ravens and caring for them? If you will give heed for a few minutes I will try to tell you. God in this, is showing out the perfection of His character. He cares for all His creatures, He feeds all the birds. But there are “unclean and hateful birds”; does God feed these? Yes, every species of the raven is unclean and God mentions the raven that we may know that He does not because of their uncleanness allow them to suffer.

Another thing God would teach us in these beautiful verses, is, that you, dear boys and girls, who read this paper, are of more value than the raven or the sparrow, and God cares for you. Whether you are saved or unsaved, He makes His sun to shine upon you, and sends rain to water the earth and make it bring forth for you. But, far more, He has given His own dear Son that you might have everlasting life, if only you believe on Him as the One who has suffered for your sins. Then, though your sins have been as scarlet, they will be made white as snow. Have you thought of His love and His care? Do you trust Him?

How many of you can say, Jesus is mine? R.

ML 09/02/1900

Companions.

DEAR little doggie up on the back of his little mistress, his paws about her neck and held tight by her hands, and his face laid against her cheek! What happy companions they seem to be! No doubt they play and have many a frolic together, and they will be very fond of each other.

Dogs love those Who are kind to them, and often they make most desirable companions, for they will follow their friends and watch over them, and in many instances, they have been the means of preserving their lives. I once read of a dog that was sleeping with his master one night, in an old, untenanted house. Along in the night the dog began to bark furiously and to pull at his master’s clothes. After a time, the man, seeing the dog was much distressed, got up and went out of the house. He had scarcely got well out when the whole ceiling, under which he had been lying, fell down with a great crash. His faithful dog was, in this instance, the means of preserving his life.

I will give you another little incident in which a dog was the means of preserving life. A little boy was out on the hills one bleak, wintry afternoon, attending his grandfather’s sheep; by his side ran his almost constant companion, his faithful shepherd dog. A blinding snow storm came on and the little boy while attempting to get his sheep together, in order to take them home, fell into a deep hole, and, already benumbed with the cold, he was unable to get out. The dog seemed to understand the situation, and away he ran for help, over the hills, as fast as he could go, to where the grandfather lived. When he got there he whined and barked so piteously that the grandfather understood there was something the matter with his little boy. He was not able himself to go out on the hills in the storm, but he wrapped his Scotch plaid about him and went out to a neighbor’s and asked him if he would not go in search of the lost child. The kind neighbor was very willing to go and was soon following the faithful dog who ran, barking, before, to show the way. At last the boy was found, almost buried in the snow, and quite unconscious. The kind, strong man got him out and put him on his shoulder and carried him home, where they succeeded in restoring him to consciousness, and then gave him some warm supper and put him to bed. In this case, if the good dog had not been with his little master, the child must have perished.

But there are other companions beside dogs, dear children, and it is of these I wish specially to speak, for you will all, perhaps, have such companions; I mean boys and girls. Have you ever thought how important it is that you should be very, very careful in choosing your companions? Perhaps you have often heard this old saying, “Evil communications corrupt good manners.” Now this is very true. If you go with those who use naughty words, you will soon be using naughty words, too; or if you do not allow them to come from your mouth they will be in your mind and will thus have a defiling effect on you. If you go with those who do naughty things you will learn from them to do naughty things also.

If you will put a good sound apple beside a rotten one you will find that the sound one will soon begin to rot, too. The good apple will never make the bad one good, but the bad apple will soon make the good one bad. And the same principle is true as to our companionships. We must keep away from evil if we do not wish to be defiled.

I hope you will all heed God’s word. He says,

“Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.” Prov. 4:14, 15.

Sometimes those we would not claim as companions come and seek to lead us in a wrong way. Here again God’s word directs our action. “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.” Prov. 1:10. R.

ML 09/09/1900

A Conversation Without a Word Being Spoken.

AH, perhaps my young readers will think this was between deaf and dumb people, who talk to each other with their fingers. But no, that was not it. The conversation was between two persons who could both hear and speak, and yet they did not speak a word. And if you were to guess a long time, I do not think you could tell how it was done. So I will tell you.

A long time ago an English soldier was stationed at a place in Holland. He was lodging with another soldier at a large farmhouse, and at first the people were afraid that these soldiers would be rude and noisy; but to their surprise they both behaved very well. One evening one of them was seen to be reading a little book, and a girl out of curiosity looked over his shoulder, and seeing it divided into chapters and verses called out, “De Bibel, de Bibel.” (The Bible, the Bible.) It was now known that these soldiers were readers of the Bible, and this led to the conversation I want to tell you about.

The soldiers used to sit in the kitchen of the farm-house, where there was a good fire; one evening the door of the room opened, and in walked an aged woman of seventy or eighty years of age. She brought with her a large family Bible. She could not speak a word of English, and the soldiers could not speak Dutch. But she opened, her Bible and pointed to a portion of the New Testament, and did the best she could to ask them to explain what it meant. One of the soldiers opened his Bible at the same place, and having read the passage, turned to another passage which he thought would answer her question, and shewed the old lady the place. She turned to her Bible and read it. This pleased her so much that she turned to another passage, and the soldier gave an answer in the same way, and so they conversed for nearly an hour. At length the old lady rose and lifting up her hands uttered a prayer in Dutch, and took an affectionate farewell of the soldiers.

Thus God’s book spoke to their hearts. They both loved the Saviour, and they were cheered and comforted and felt at home, though they could not speak a word to each other.

Selected.

ML 09/09/1900

Jesus in the Synagogue at Capernaum.

I WOULD like to have you read verses 21 to 28 in the first chapter of Mark. In these verses we find that after Jesus had called Simon, Andrew, James and John to follow Him, He went into Capernaum, a town by the sea of Galilee. And there on the Sabbath day He entered the synagogue, and began to teach the people. This teaching made a wonderful impression on the people who heard it. There was something about it different from the teaching of the scribes. And what do you think was the cause of this? Well, Jesus not only spoke the words which God gave Him to speak, but He spoke with the power of God. “He taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.”

The people had never heard anything like it before, and they were filled with wonder. God meant that they should feel the power of Jesus’ teaching, so that, if they rejected Him, they should be without excuse.

But there was another kind of being present in the synagogue that day. There was an unclean spirit there, —a devil, or demon, dwelling in a poor man who was a captive to Satan’s power. This unclean spirit knew who Jesus was, and he was afraid of Him, and “cried out, saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art, Thou Holy One of God.” We are told in another Scripture that the devils believe, and tremble. So it was with this evil spirit. He knew Jesus, and was afraid.

If you read the Scriptures carefully, you will find that there are a great many evil spirits. They are called devils, or demons. And there is one chief, or prince, who is over them. He is called the devil, or Satan. In a former number of Messages of Love you have, perhaps, read how Satan tried to overcome Jesus in the wilderness, and how Jesus defeated him, and drove him away, In this Scripture we see how Jesus could also drive away the evil spirits, which were under the leadership of Satan. Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man; and when he had torn the man, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. Does it not make you glad to think that poor man was delivered from such a terrible power? Well, perhaps you need to be delivered, too, from the power of Satan. You may not have an unclean spirit dwelling in you, like the man in the synagogue, but if you are unsaved you need to be delivered from Satan’s power, for he is the god of this world, and exercises an evil influence over those who are not saved. Jesus alone can save you. He alone can deliver you from Satan’s terrible power. Oh! will you not take Him as your Saviour, and thus be set free from the power of that evil one who would lead you to destruction?

When the people saw the poor man set free from the unclean spirit, they were greatly surprised, and they said among themselves, “What thing is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority commandeth He even the unclean spirits, and they do obey Him.” But if they had believed that Jesus was the Son of God, would they have been surprised? They would have known that the Son of God could cast out devils. But, dear children, many of them saw Jesus cast out devils, and still did not believe in Him. They rejected Him. They would not have Him to be their Saviour. Oh! shall it be so with you?

May God forbid! A. H. R.

ML 09/09/1900

"Take Care of Me!"

LAST Saturday some boys and girls went on their wheels for a ride to a pretty lake they wanted to see.

It was a nice sunny day, and not too hot, so they made their bicycles go pretty fast past the trees and houses and stores and dogs that were all along the way. Two of the girls got ahead of the rest, and were riding so fast, and talking too, that they did not see they had come to a long hill until after they were going down it.

“O, Mary,” said Anna, who was just back of her, “this is an awful steep hill! I’m afraid to go on, and I can’t get off my bicycle. What shall I do?”

“Just stay on,” said Mary, “you’re all right.” But just then Mary saw a railroad track across the road further down the hill, but not as far as the bottom of the hill, so they would have to ride over it.

“I hope a train won’t come along,” Mary said. But Anna was quite a little distance behind, and did not hear, and did not see the track at all.

Just then a train came round a curve at the other side of some woods, and it was coming very fast towards the very road Mary and Anna were on. Mary was getting so near to the track, and the train coming so fast, it was plain they would meet on the crossing.

There was a steep bank with a barbed wire fence on each side of the hill they were riding down, so she couldn’t go down there, and to turn round would make Anna ride into her, and then perhaps Anna would keep on and get killed. What could Mary do! Not a thing! She looked at the green trees and heard the birds sting, and then thought of God above the blue sky, who loved her so much He sent His Son to die for her.

“O, God, Thou seest me, take care of me!” she prayed, and then shut her eyes; the engine was getting nearer and she was almost to the track.

Do you think God heard? Yes, He did. And what do you think He did? He made the train come to a dead stop just before the road, so Mary and Anna could pass! And just as soon as they got over, the engine whistled and went on again very fast. Wasn’t that good of God? Both Mary and Anna thanked Him for His great mercy as soon as they got past.

He saw Mary, and would not let her be hurt when she prayed to Him. She could not help herself, but He could, and He did.

And has He not sent His Son down to save us from something worse than being killed by a train? Yes, He has. The Lord Jesus died on the cross because He loved us and wanted us to be up in heaven some day with Him, and that was the only way He could save us from Satan.

All we have to do is to trust Him, believe Him. Do you?

E. M. G.

ML 09/09/1900

"Gentleness, Goodness."

THREE little kitties! How demure they look! And what nice pets they, make as they frolic and play, or show by their gentle purring that they appreciate the kind petting you may give them. I hope my little readers will never tease or show unkindness to their pets, whether dogs or cats, rabbits or birds, or whatever they may be. We should feel for the poor dumb animals that cannot tell us what they want, or how they feel. God has made these little creatures and it is His will that we should be kind to them.

If you will look at the heading of this little piece you will see two of the precious fruits of the Spirit— “gentleness, goodness.” And do not forget, dear children, that if this fruit is in us, we will show it towards the animals as well as towards our brothers and sisters and playmates.

But let us take a little closer look at our picture. A cup and saucer stands near the three kitties, and something that looks like a cigar is leaning on the edge of the saucer. The three kits look almost as if they were disgusted; and well they might be if we are right in our thought. I hope that the dear boys who read this paper will turn away with a feeling of disgust, also, from the use of tobacco in every form. Some boys think it makes them look manly to be seen with a cigar or cigarette in their mouth. They do not understand how sad and bad a habit it is; how it robs them of time and money, and makes them disagreeable to many people, and undermines their health, and often weakens their brain power. And it is a habit which, if once formed, is very, very difficult to break away from. I do not think that the use of tobacco is a thing that is pleasing to the Lord Jesus, and I hope that the most of my readers want to please that blessed One. Do not, then allow yourselves to be persuaded by others to use it; or if you have already began its use, ask the Lord’s help, if He is your Lord, that you may be done with it.

ML 09/16/1900

Nests in a Tree

In South Africa there are some black people, called Bakones, who build their houses in the trees. They have curious little huts fixed high up on the stout branches, and when they want to go up and down they do so by means of notches cut in the trunk of the tree, some of which are so large that Mr. Moffat, the missionary, counted as many as twenty huts in one tree. Each of these huts had but one little room, about six feet across, where the inhabitants lived. It was only just about big enough to hold the bed, the rude cooking vessels, and a few other things used by these poor wild people, so that it must have been something like a gypsy’s tent, only made of wood instead of blankets. I daresay you wonder why these people live in this manner, because although, it would be very nice, just for a change you know, it must be rather awkward at times. At any rate, I fancy you would get tired of having to climb up and down every time you wanted to have a run. No room up there, you see, to bowl a hoop or even to spin a top; only just to eat and sleep. Well, the reason why these people live in trees is just this; in that wild country there are many lions, great fierce creatures that could run away with you in a moment, just as a cat would run away with a mouse. And these lions are very bold. They mostly prowl about at night, often a whole family of lions together, the father and mother and the young lions too, so that if really hungry they would not mind attacking a village; and as the houses are but slightly built, often only of branches, they could easily break in and kill everybody. But lions can’t climb, and so, in order to be safe from them, these people live, like the birds, in the branches of the great tree, as I have told you.

When they hear the terrible lions coming trampling and roaring over the plain, how nice it must be to look down from their snug little huts and feel that they are perfectly safe! “Ah!” they perhaps say (only they don’t speak English, you know,) “you may roar and rave, and roam about down there, but you can’t, touch us.”

Thus, you see, the tree is their place of refuge and security. If a flood comes, as it may sometimes do in the rainy season, they are safe up there in their nests. And then there’s another thing I must tell you; these trees are a kind of fig-tree, and figs are very nice (at least I expect you think so,) and not only nice, but are used in that country instead of bread. Dried figs pressed into the form of a cake are commonly eaten in eastern countries. (1 Sam. 25:18, 30:12; 1 Chron. 12:40.)

It is the traveler’s food, and is very supporting. Well, now, to have bread growing, so to speak, at one’s very door, must be very pleasant; not baker’s bread, you understand, but ripe, juicy figs, which are food and drink too in a hot country, where water is often scarce. So, then, this tree is not only a refuge, but also feeds and refreshes those that dwell in it. If a little black boy is playing on the wide plain and hears a lion coming he runs to the tree, scrambles up its broad, strong trunk, and is safe. If he is hungry and thirsty, he climbs along the branches and plucks the juicy figs!

“How good is the God we adore,” thus to make this useful tree grow where it is so much needed by these poor black people, too many of whom do not even know Him, and so never think of thanking Him for all His goodness.

Now can you tell me of whom this tree reminds us? Who is it that is the Refuge of the poor sinner—a refuge from judgment as well as from all the power of the enemy? When Satan, “as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour,” to whom does the believer fly and find safety? When judgment like a flood shall overwhelm the world, in whom will the believer find himself secure? “Ah,” you will say, “I know! —it is the Lord Jesus Christ.” Yes, it is; and moreover, He is also the Bread of life (John 6:35), the Rest (Matt. 11:28) and the Delight (Song of Sol. 2:3) of those who have believed in Him unto everlasting life, for they “live by the faith of the Son of God” (Gal. 2:20), they repose on His heart of love (John 13:23), and they find all their delight in His presence. (Ps. 16:11).

Have you thus made your nest in a tree?

Selected.

ML 09/16/1900

Jesus in the House of Simon and Andrew.

READ Mark 1:29-34. Here we find Jesus in the house of Simon and Andrew, after they came out of the synagogue at Capernaum. And here also we find another witness to the power of Jesus. This time it was not a man possessed with a devil, but a woman sick with a fever. The sick woman was the mother of Simon’s wife. When they told Jesus about her, He went to her, and “took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered to them.” Do you think any of the doctors could work a cure like this? No, but in Jesus there was the power of God, and He could heal the sick in a moment. This woman, as soon as she was healed, began to work in the house, and to minister to Jesus and to those who were in the house. Do you wonder that people were astonished, and that His fame spread abroad? In the evening the whole city was gathered together at the door, with all the sick, and those possessed with devils. They had heard of a man who could cast out devils, and heal the sick; and they came to see Him, and to find out if He would heal other sick people too. Do you think they were disappointed? No. He healed the sick people of their different diseases, and cast out many devils. Jesus felt for those poor distressed people, and gladly relieved them. And He always did this when He was here on earth.

Perhaps some of you may have seen men on the streets of the city, selling some medicine professing to do wonderful cures, and a great crowd of eager people listening, while they praised their wonderful, remedy. Why this eagerness? It is because so many people have bodily ailments, and would like to be cured, and feel well. So the people flocked to Jesus, when they thought He could cure them of their diseases. He did not have any medicine to sell, but He had the power to heal, and the suffering crowds come to get the healing.

But, dear children, there is something worse than these diseases of the body. There is sin, which destroys the soul as well as the body. And those who do not get deliverance from it must perish forever. Sickness of the body may cause a great deal of suffering in this world, and even death itself, but sin brings eternal misery in a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. Do you not think, if people believed this, they would be anxious about their souls, as well as their bodies? Ah! but the devil deceives people, and blinds them as to the real state of their souls, so that they are not troubled about their sins. The crowds came to Jesus to get their bodies healed, when, perhaps, very few of them were troubled about their souls; and perhaps many got their bodies healed, who afterwards perished in their sins.

And how is it going to be with you, my young reader? Have you ever been troubled about your sins? Jesus is not now here healing bodies, as He was then; but He has died on the cross for our sins, in order that our souls might be saved. If we believe on Him we get the salvation of our souls now. And when He comes again, He will save our bodies too, for He will change them, and make them like His own body in glory. We will then have a body of glory in which we will have no more sickness, and no more pain.

Is it not better, then, to come to Jesus now, not for healing of the body only, but for healing of the soul, so that we may spend a happy eternity with Jesus, where there will be no more sickness, nor pain, nor death?

A. H. R.

ML 09/16/1900

"Oh, How Glad I Am!"

I WANT to tell my little friends of a lady I called to see who was very sick, and the doctor had said she could never get better. Before she was taken sick, she was attending some gospel meetings, and became very much troubled about all the sins she had committed, and wanted to know how she could have them forgiven.

One night, after she went home from a gospel meeting, she could not go to sleep, so at last she got on her knees, and told the Lord that she wanted to have her sins forgiven, and she accepted Christ as her Saviour there and then. She was then very happy, for she knew her sins were all put away from God’s sight, and the precious blood of Jesus had washed her whiter than snow.

Not very long after this she became very sick, and suffered a great deal of pain. When I went to see her, she said, “Oh, how glad I am that I did not put off any longer believing on the Lord Jesus as my Saviour, for my poor body is so full of pain, I could not think much about my precious soul!”

How important it is, dear little children, that you should not wait any longer, but believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, at once. You cannot see into the future, and do not know when you may be called away from this world. Thousands of little boys and girls die every day, and you do not know but that your turn may come soon. And then we do not know when the Lord Jesus will come, and, in the twinkling of an eye, take all who love Him to be forever with Him, and leave the unsaved behind for judgment. He may come today. How sad it would be if any of our little readers should die unprepared, or be left behind when the Lord Jesus calls His own away!

May you put off no longer accepting Christ, but believe on Him as your own Saviour now, and if death should take you away, or the blessed Lord should come, you would be taken into His presence to spend eternity with Him.

“Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” Heb. 4:7.

E. B. H.

ML 09/16/1900

Life.

WHAT is it, do you think, that the girl in the picture is holding in her chubby little hands? It is something that seems to be engrossing the attention of the three little folks. Look at the faces of the little boys! They seem to be full of expectation and pleasure.

Do you guess what it is that is so absorbing these little children? There is a fine nest made out of an old basket; in it is a hen, and on its edge is perched a little chick; all about it are broken shells showing the prison houses out of which the little chicks have come. Have you thought yet what the little girl has in her hand? It looks as if she was helping one of the little chicks to get out, by gently breaking the shell, while the boys watch with breathless interest to see how successful she will be. Our picture shows the little chicks coming into life. Did you ever think, dear children, what a wonderful thing life is? God gives life to all His creatures; to man and beast and insect and creeping things and fish of the sea and birds of the air; He gives life also to the grass and trees and flowers, for these things live and die even as man a n d beast live and die. I would like to have you think of God’s marvelous power in giving life to all creatures, but especially of what He means when He says of man, “In Him we live, and move, and have our being.”

You could not live a moment if God did not sustain your life. You could not raise your hand to your head if God did not allow you to do it. You could not take, a step without strength from God for it. It is well to think about these things, and well to know that we are dependent on God for every breath that we draw.

But interesting and important as this life we now live is, there is another life that is of vastly greater importance.

If I were to ask you what this life is, I think most of you would quickly answer, “It is eternal life.”

Yes, that is what I mean. Eternal life is a life that goes on forever. Our bodies may die and be laid in the ground and if they should, our souls, set free from the body of death, will go to be with Jesus, if we are His; and when Jesus comes He will clothe the soul in a new body that can never die; a body that will be all beautiful and glorious like the body that Jesus now has up in heaven. These bodies of glory will never know sickness or weakness; they will be bodies of power in which we can pass through millions and millions of miles of space and that in a very short time. Will it not be wonderful to be brought into power and glory like this?

But what is most blessed in connection with this great change is this; we will be brought into association with Jesus, and will enjoy, in the power of this wonderful life, all the blessings He has purchased, and the joys He has prepared for us.

God has given to you, my, young reader, the natural life. Have you the eternal life? If not, would you not like to have it? Do you ask, How can I get eternal life? God’s word gives the answer.

“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” John 3:36.

Do you believe on Jesus Christ as the Son of God—the One who came down from heaven to seek and to save you? And do you believe that He suffered on the cross for your sins? And do you submit to Him as your Lord—the One who has authority over you? If you believe on Him as your Saviour, and submit to Him as your Lord, you have everlasting life.

The words of Jesus are, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.” R.

ML 09/23/1900

Jesus Praying.

YOU might think that one who had such power as Jesus would not need to pray to God. But this is not so. Jesus was God, but He had become a man, too, and the right state for a man is to be dependent on God. The power and perfection of the man Christ Jesus lay in His keeping the place of entire dependence on God. He came to do God’s will, and He expressed His dependence on God, by praying to Him.

If you will read Mark 1:35, you will see that Jesus rose a great while before day, and went to a solitary place, where He could be alone with God, and there prayed. In Luke 6:12, we are told that He went into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

You will also find in Luke 3:21, it was when Jesus was praying after His baptism, that He received the Holy Ghost. So also in Luke 9:29, we learn, it was when He prayed on the mount, that He was transfigured. “And as He prayed, the fashion of His countenance was altered, and His raiment was white and glistening.” Then again, in Luke 22:41-46 we get Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane, just before He suffered on the cross.

There are other Scriptures also which speak of Jesus as praying; but I have called your attention to these, to show that Jesus was in the habit of praying to God. He was not careless about it, and did not allow anything to hinder Him. If He was thronged by the people through the day, who came to hear His teaching, and to get their deaf and dumb and sick and lame cured, He would get up very early, before it was day, and go where He could be alone to pray. Just before choosing His twelve apostles, He spent the whole night in prayer to God. He felt the importance of what was before Him, and took it all to God, and communed with Him about it the whole night. All this shows how perfect Jesus was as a man. He did not do His own will, but sought God’s mind in everything, and did only what He knew to be pleasing in God’s sight. This was the secret of all the blessing that flowed down from God through Him.

Now, dear children, if Jesus took everything to God in prayer, is it not fitting that we, the creatures of God, should pray to Him, and more especially if we have believed in Jesus, and are the children of God? If Jesus thought it worthwhile to raise long before day, and go out to some solitary place to pray, or spend a whole night in prayer, up on a mountain, do you not think there must be something in it? Yes, God likes to have us come to Him with all our needs. Only you must not think that your prayers will purchase your salvation. The blood of Christ has purchased that, and God gives it freely to all who believe in Jesus. But when we have believed, God likes to have us bring everything to Him in prayer, so that He may help us in all our needs. How many of you are in the habit of bowing on your knees before God, when you arise in the morning, and when you go to bed, to thank God for His goodness, and to seek His blessing? And how many of you go sometimes, where you can be alone, in order to pray to God? I am sure if you do this, you will find it good for your souls.

A. H. R.

If little children knew the love

Which dwells in Jesus’ breast,

How would they crowd unto His arms

All anxious to be blest!

“Come unto Me,” He sweetly cries:

Come little children, come;

Come to My open arms and heart ;

Come to My happy home.

Thus Jesus speaks,

Who makes reply,

“O Lord, I come to Thee;

Thy precious love hath won my heart,

Thine henceforth I will be”?

Oh precious choice, if such be thine,

Then thou indeed art blest :

Peace thy companion here shall be,

There, everlasting rest.

ML 09/23/1900

True Courage.

PEOPLE are called courageous who are not afraid to fight and kill others, and a little boy is said to be “plucky” or courageous who will not let another boy torment him without fighting him.

A boy is said to be very plucky, too, when he will do dangerous things, or disobey, without fear of punishment, those who have authority over him at school; and we have known little boys to be called sneaks and cowards, because they were not courageous enough to disobey their parents.

But, dear children, all this is far, very far, from true courage. Doing what we know to be right, in the face of opposition and contempt, is true courage. To confess with our lips the Lord Jesus, and to pray to God before our companions, who may not love or fear Him, is also, true courage.

Listen, dear boys, while I tell you about a little boy who had this true courage. He was a weak, sickly boy, and had a meek, quiet, little face that great big, strong, rude boys laughed at, and called a baby face. He had, up to the time that I am going to tell you of, in consequence of ill health, been kept much at home, and had rarely been away from his mother’s side, and had mixed very little with other boys, hence was timid and awkward at most of the games that boys play, for which they laughed at him a good deal. He would not fight when ill-treated, or resent, in any way the unkindness of others; so that he was thought to be a coward, by boys who didn’t know what true courage was.

His father, up to his death, had taught him at home, but after that he was sent to a large boarding school. You can think what this would be for a weak, timid, little boy to be taken into, with no kind mother or friend near to watch over him.

Well, it is about his first night at the school that I want to tell you. Picture to yourselves a large room with over a dozen little beds in it, and as many boys laughing and talking, and undressing, preparatory to getting into these little beds, and not one of them once thinking of the God who made them, or of the kind Lord Jesus who died on the cross to save them; see them, when undressed, one by one getting into bed without bowing their knees in prayer. Do you think you would have been able, before them all, to kneel down by your bedside, before undressing, and pray? This little boy did. Yes, with trembling heart, he knelt before the Lord, and prayed to Him, as he had been accustomed to do at home in his own little room, where there was no one to see him, but the “Father who seeth in secret.”

Some of the rude boys laughed at him, and threw their slippers at him, and called him names to make him stop, but he just quietly went on praying to the Lord, and heeded them not. The next morning he did the same, and continued morning and night thus on his knees to confess the Lord Jesus. Nor was this all, other little boys who once had prayed at home, but had been afraid to do so before their companions at school, encouraged by his example, began again to pray, so that by the end of the half term, there were but three, out of that large room full of boys, who would not have been seen morning and night lifting their hearts on bended knees to the Lord. The true courage of the little, weak, meek-faced boy had communicated itself to others.

Dear children, I want you all to have this true courage, and never to be afraid to own the Lord Jesus by confessing Him, and praying before others where there is a need for it, as in the case of this little boy. The Lord Jesus says, “Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven.” Matt. 10:32.

Selected.

ML 09/23/1900

A Letter.

DEAR children: As you receive Messages of Love from time to time, do you realize that they are God’s messages to you? He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

I often think of those solemn words, “And the door was shut.” Suppose someone was to shut a heavy door between you and your dear papa and mamma, how dreadful it would seem to you, though that would only be for a little while; but the door that God tells us about, will be shut forever and ever. God says to you now, “Look unto Me and be ye saved,” before the door of grace closes, and we do not know how soon it will be.

There are many prayers going up to God, in the name of the Lord Jesus, that the dear readers of Messages of Love may accept Christ as their own Saviour and live for Him in this world, till He comes.

May you be able to say from your hearts,

“Just as I am—without one plea,

But that Thy blood was shed for me,

And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee,

O Lamb of God I come!”

ML 09/23/1900

The Royal Barge

THIS is a very handsome, old fashioned boat. The large man standing in the center is a king, Charles I., of England. Before him sits his queen, with a pet dog on her lap, and one of the little princesses is feeding the swans as they float along. The royal family, with their guards and servants, are out for a pleasure ride, on the river Thames, on a summer’s evening. It is a pleasant scene, but I doubt the king’s enjoyment of it. Poor man! The terrible troubles that came upon him, soon took away both his crown, and his head.

I suppose you think if you were a king, you would be happy, with all the grand houses and clothing which they have, but kings have special troubles of their own, and great men are not always happy. No one can be really happy un, less he knows the Lord Jesus as his own Saviour.

I once heard of a king who looked very unhappy, and a friend of his said to him that he thought it was strange he had such a sad face, and if he were in his position—the head of a country and surrounded with such grandeur—he would be happy.

The king then asked him if he would wear his crown, and sit on his throne for a time, and see if he would be happy.

The man consented, and the day was appointed; when the time arrived, he went to the palace, the crown was placed on his head, he was dressed in the king’s gorgeous robes, and he was blind—folded and led to the throne. After he sat down, his eyes were uncovered, and he viewed with admiration the grandeur around him.

Presently he looked up, and think of his dismay at seeing a sword right above his head, hung by a single thread, which might fall at any moment!

Then he looked to the floor, and his terror was increased by seeing that the beautiful throne on which he sat, was placed on some rotten boards, over a dark hole, and they were liable to break with him and down he would go into that dreadful abyss.

He cried out in his fright to be released from his dangerous position.

The king came to him, and said, “Now you can understand why I am not happy, notwithstanding all this grandeur with which I am surrounded. I know the sword of God’s judgment is hanging over me, ready to fall at any moment, or if I should die, I would drop into hell. It is these dreadful realities that cause me to be unhappy.”

Such is the position of every one who has not trusted in Christ, not only kings, but everyone else. As soon as any one trusts in Him, He delivers them from these terrible judgments.

But the Lord Jesus is soon coming again, to be King, and then He will take all the crowns and kingdoms in this world for His own. He will be King of Kings!

How well it would be if all the kings in the world would be wise now, and be subject to Him!

If we suffer patiently a while now, with Jesus, by and by when He reigns, we shall reign with Him. This will be far better than this world’s fading glory.

Charles I. was first a king, and then a prisoner. You may suffer reproach for Christ now, and reign in glory with Him all through eternity.

Will not that be far better?

Jesus is coming soon.

W. D. C.

ML 09/30/1900

Old Testament Lessons

A letter to you.

When I was living at home with my father, he did not need to write to me; but when I left home, then he sent letters to me. So now, man is away from God, and He has sent him a letter. The Bible is this letter. The Holy Spirit wrote it, and God gives us the Spirit to teach us its meaning. God wants to tell us all about His beloved Son, so that we may know the love of God. You remember in Luke 24, Jesus explains to two disciples “from Moses and all the prophets the things concerning Himself,” and in the same chapter He tells His disciples, “that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and in the Prophets and in the Psalms concerning Me.” These are the three great divisions of the Old Testament.

A man said to a believer in Christ, “Do you not think the Bible would have been better without those stories, or parts so hard to believe?” “What parts do you mean?” “Oh! such as Jonah being swallowed by a fish. The Christian answered, “Do you believe Jesus to be the Son of God?” “Yes,” said the man. “Well, then you must believe it all, for He said it was true, and that very account of Jonah is a type or figure of Christ’s death and resurrection. ‘As Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart, of the earth.’” Matt. 12:40. A young believer said, in answer to an old doctor who was asking him perplexing questions, “It is easy to believe the whole Bible when you have believed the story of God’s love, and on Jesus as the Son of God.”

The written word (the Bible) and the living word (Jesus) go together, as the Lord said in John 5, “Had ye believed Moses (that is, Genesis to Deuteronomy) ye would have believed Me; for he wrote of Me. But if ye believed not his writings, how shall ye believe My words?”

Just think, dear children, of this book written by God, through many different penmen, and hundreds of years between some of them, yet all, about the same blessed Person. Men could not write such a book, nor can we understand it, till our eyes are opened by God’s Spirit, as Jesus did for His disciples, in Luke 24, “Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand the, scriptures.” If I know the Lord Jesus as my Saviour, the Spirit will teach me of Him, but otherwise I might read it, only as an amusement, or a duty.

McCheyne’s hymn says,

“I oft read with pleasure, to soothe or engage,

Isaiah’s wild measure or John’s simple page;

But e’en when they pictured the blood-sprinkled tree,

Jehovah Tsidkenu seemed nothing to me.”

But after he knew Christ as his Saviour, he said,

“No refuge, no safety in self could I see;

Jehovah Tsidkenu, my Saviour must be.

My terrors all vanished before that sweet name;

My guilty fears banished, with boldness I came,

To drink at the fountain, life-giving and free,

Jehovah Tsidkenu is all things to me.”

And may He be all things to my dear young friends who may read this.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. 2 Tim. 3:16.

A. F.

ML 09/30/1900

God's Grace to a Family in Bermuda.

GOD, in His great grace, was pleased, some years ago, to visit a family, consisting of five persons, and in the course of two weeks bring them out of darkness into light, and fill their hearts with rejoicing through the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mrs. W. was the first of the number who became exercised about her state of soul. Her mother, to whom she was fondly attached, was called suddenly from time into eternity, and Mrs. W. did not know whether she was saved. Her grief in this loss, and her concern lest possibly her mother had died unsaved, so weighed upon Mrs. W.’s heart, that for weeks she could scarcely eat anything. While she was thus troubled, and mourning over matters, these words came suddenly to her one night; “As sudden as this death has come into your home, so suddenly will judgment come upon you all and you will not be prepared to meet it.” The next night this question came to her, ‘Suppose that judgment should come tonight, are you prepared to meet it?’ She felt that she was not, and now she began to be much concerned for herself, and her household. She and her husband were members, in good standing of the Established Church, at the time, but for them it was only an empty form, and when eternal realities pressed upon the soul, they felt that there was nothing for them in: the profession they had made.

After some weeks of deepening exercise of soul, Mrs. W. went down one Lord’s day to the sea-shore, not far from her dwelling, to witness a baptism. This baptism was conducted by some simple Portuguese Christians who had left the Roman Catholic Church and were going on quietly and happily with the Lord; there was something in their earnestness of manner and their zeal that deeply impressed Mrs. W. When she got home she said to her family, “Somebody’s wrong; I believe these people are right, and we who are in the Church of England are wrong.” But seeing that she was in a wrong position did not set her soul free; it only served to deepen her concern.

One day she said to a Christian neighbor, “I believe in the scripture, but I do not understand how anyone can be saved; I do not believe anyone can be saved on earth.” “Yes,” the neighbor said to her, “a person can know here on earth what it is to be saved;” she then related how the Lord had dealt with her and how He had brought salvation to her. This again made a strong impression on Mrs. W.’s mind; she was now convinced that there was reality in these things.

The night after witnessing the baptism, she was led to search God’s word. While doing so, her attention was arrested by this verse— “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

She pondered these words and continued to search the scriptures diligently all that week, allowing herself little time for anything else. She was convinced that was God’s word, and God’s truth, but, as yet, she could not say that Jesus had died for her sins and that she was saved.

Saturday evening came; she knelt before retiring and asked the Lord to bless her while on her knees, or if not then, while in her bed. On waking the next morning, the burden was gone, and she rejoiced in the Lord as her Saviour.

ML 09/30/1900

Riches.

A FEW years ago there was a miner living in A. who was prospecting for gold. One day he found some very rich ore, so he started for the land office to file his claim. But while on his way, he met an old friend whom he had not seen for several years. They stood and talked over old times for awhile, and then resorted to a saloon to treat each other. (This is a token of friendship among a great many people, specially among miners.) They indulged in drink after drink, so after a few hours the miner thought he had better go to the land office and get the required papers to hold his mine. But when he got there, to his astonishment and disappointment, he found that a man had been there just a little before him, and taken his claim. But his disappointment deepened as time went on; the mine proved to be a very rich one, for the man who got it made a fortune out of it. And as the poor miner labored hard for daily bread, he thought of the fortune that might have been his, which would have released him from hard toil for the rest of his life

But he had allowed the opportunity to slip away by drinking with his friend. Now, dear children, let us be careful lest our foolishness far surpass his; for there are thousands of people who are running after the fancies, and vanities of this fleeting life, and who will soon be too late to obtain the riches and glory that God is now offering them. It is not the kind of riches that the miner lost. It is “an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away,” and it is “reserved in heaven.” 1 Pet. 1:4. Oh, let us be warned by the miner’s tardy actions, and heed those words of love and grace, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Cor. 6:2. The miner’s accepted time was when he started for the land office, and your accepted time is now.

Listen to the solemn word of God, “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” Heb. 2:3. What will it be to be wrapped in the shades of endless night, in that place of deep despair, with fiends and devils for companions, and to know that thousands are in fadeless light and glory; and then to say I might have been there, too, enjoying the blissful company of Jesus, saints and angels, but I neglected it in the pursuit of life’s fleeting pleasures!

Oh, be wise; accept of Christ as your Saviour now, and you will have the riches “reserved in heaven,” which will never fade away. C. C. C.

ML 09/30/1900

Bible Questions for October.

The answers are to be found in the 2nd Epistle to the Corinthians, and the first letter of each answer will spell what the Lord said to Paul when he prayed that the thorn might be removed.

1. From what place did the brethren supply what was lacking to Paul?

2. Give the verse before these words, “Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of, Christ.”

3.Give the verse following these words, “Now is the day of salvation.”

4.Give the verse containing these words, “We have wronged no man.”

5.What words follow these, “To the one we are the savor of death unto death”?

6.Give the whole verse containing these words, “Bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”

7.Whom did the serpent beguile through his subtilty?

8.Give the last verse in the chapter containing these words, “Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation.”

9.Give the name of one of the three who preached the son of God, Jesus Christ, among them.

10.Give the verse following this, “Sufficient to such a man is this punishment,” etc.

11.Give the rest of this verse, “How that he was caught up into paradise and heard” —

12.Give the verse before this, “So then death worketh in us, but life in you.”

13.Give the rest of this verse, “Not of the letter but of the Spirit;”

14.Give the verse containing these words, “In watchings often, in hunger and thirst,”

15.Give the rest of this verse, “Persecuted but not forsaken;”

16. Give the rest of this verse, “This is the third time I am coming to you.”

17.Give the rest of this verse, “As also ye have acknowledged us in part that we are your rejoicing.”

18.Give the verse before these words, “Who hath also sealed us.”

19.Of whom does Paul say, “He is my partner and fellow helper”?

20.Give the verse before these words, “Casting down imaginations.”

21.Give the verse before these words, “Thrice was I beaten with rods.”

22.Give the remaining part of this verse, “That the abundant grace might, through the thanksgiving of many,” —

23.Give the verse following these words, “All the saints salute you.”

24.Give the rest of the verse in which these words are found, “But this I say”—

25.Give the rest of this verse, “For our light affliction which is hut for a moment, worketh out for us a far more”—

26.Give the words coming before these, “Prove your own selves.”

Answers to Questions of August 5th.

1. “There is none that,” etc. Romans 3:11.

2. “He that spared not,” etc. 8:32.

3.“Esaias.” 9:27.

4.“Wherefore the law,” etc. 7:12.

5.“Abraham.” 4:3.

6.“Grace to you, and,” etc. 1:7.

7.“Even the,” etc. 3:22.

8.“Say not in thine,” etc. 10:6.

9.“Or, Who shall,” etc. 10:7.

10.“For I am not,” etc. 1:16.

11.“So then every one,” etc. 14:12.

12.“I shall come in the,” etc. 15:29.

13.“Nay, in all these,” etc. 8:37.

14.“I thank God through,” etc. 7:25.

15.“So then they that,” etc. 8:8.

16.“David.” 4:6.

17.“Elias.” 11:2.

18.“As I live, saith the,” etc. 14:11.

19.“There is no fear of,” etc. 3:18.

20.“How beautiful are,” etc. 10:15.

21.“The wages of sin is death.” 6:23.

ML 10/07/1900

God's Grace to a Family in Bermuda.

The next member of the family who was saved was Louise, the youngest daughter, a girl of ten. A neighbor had asked her if she was saved, and as she was not able to say that she was, she became exercised through this question about her soul. Also, her mother was now rejoicing in the Lord Jesus, and she felt that she would like to rejoice, too. And the Lord graciously wrought in her young heart, showing her that He was “the Way.” The Thursday morning after her mother found peace, Louise came out of her room with a beaming face, and going up to her mother, said, “Mamma, the Lord has blessed me.” The Lord had spoken to her soul in the night; and now the dear girl was rejoicing.

Next came Mr. W. He had seen the exercise of soul through which his wife had been passing and the joy that had come to her, and he listened while she told him what the Lord had done for her. In the morning, before he would go to work, and in the evening when he would return from it, she would read to him from God’s word and would talk to him about it. His soul began to be stirred with longings to know the truth of these things.

Some Christians of the neighborhood, had now begun to have some meetings sometimes at one house, sometimes at another. The evening after Louise was made to know Jesus as her Saviour, the meeting was held in Mr. W.’s house, and Mrs. W. asked her husband if he would not attend it. He would not go into the room where the meeting was held, but stood outside, at the window, looking in and listening. On the next evening, another meeting was held; this time he went inside and listened as one whose soul was hanging in the balance. The next day, Saturday, the picture of Jesus hanging upon the cross and the blood dripping from the thorn-crowned brow, was presented vividly to his mind, and made a deep impression upon him; he took up a Bible, and turning over its leaves, his eyes fell upon these words, “I will be to him a Father and he shall be to Me a Son.” He took this as God’s word to him showing that he had been taken up for blessing, and his heart was filled with joy. Thus, in less than a week, three members of that household were brought to the Lord.

It was not many days later that Mabel, the oldest daughter and only child, except Louise, became exercised about her sins. She attended the meetings, and heard the truth. She saw her father and mother and sister rejoicing in the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, and she did not know Him; she heard their long, earnest conversations about the one theme that was filling their souls with joy, but, as yet, these things were not for her. It was not long, however, until the Lord gently spoke to her through this precious verse, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” She believed and her heart was made glad. When she came out to breakfast next morning, her mother noticed at once that there was a new light in her face and without waiting for her to speak asked her if she was blessed; she nodded her head and smiled, and has since shown in her life the change that had been wrought.

ML 10/07/1900

Jesus Cleansing the Leper.

WE have already noticed in connection with Mark 1:35, that Jesus had risen a great while before day, and had gone out to a solitary place to pray. In the verses that follow, we learn that some of the disciples followed Him; and when they found Him, they told Him that everybody was seeking Him. Then Jesus proposed that they should go into the next towns, that He might preach there also. This was what He had come for. So “He preached in their synagogues, throughout all Galilee, and cast out devils.”

Then we are told of a special case of healing. “There came a leper to Him, beseeching Him, and kneeling down to Him, and saying unto Him. If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth His hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.”

Now you will notice that this leper believed that Jesus could heal him, but he did not know whether He was willing. He said “If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean.” Is it not the same with a great many who would like to be saved, and who believe that Jesus can save them, but are not sure whether He is willing? Well, Jesus not only had the power to heal the leper, but He was willing to do so. He said, “I will; be thou clean.” And Jesus is not only able to save the sinner, but He is willing to save. He came to seek, and to save; and He said, “Him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out.” His blood has been shed for sinners, and that blood cleanses from all sin. There is no sin too great, and there is no sinner too vile. Jesus can save the worst and the vilest; and He is willing to do so. It is what He came to do, and what He delights to do.

Has He saved you, my young reader? If not, why not? You have a worse disease than the leper had. You need to be cleansed from sin. Do you not feel your need of a Saviour? Will you not come to Jesus to be cleansed, just as the leper did? He is able, and He will say to you, “I will; be thou clean.”

When Jesus cleansed the leper, He charged him not to tell any man, but to go and show himself to the priests, and offer for his cleansing. This was according to the law. If you will read Lev. 13 and 14, you will see that the priest was to be the judge whether the leper was cleansed. So if this man went to the priests, and they said that he was cleansed, it would be a testimony to them. It would be a proof that God had visited His poor suffering people, to heal them, and to forgive them. But the poor man did not think of this, and went and told everybody, so that Jesus could not show Himself openly, on account of the great. crowds. So He went into desert places. But even there people came to Him from every quarter. Old how wonderful it was. God was in Jesus, here in this world, a Healer and a Saviour. And although they rejected Jesus, and crucified Him, He is still a Saviour. Through His death He made atonement for sin, and He invites the whole world to come to Him and be saved. Blessed Saviour! Will you not come to Him, and be cleansed from all your sin?

ML 10/07/1900

Carrying Badness to Jesus.

A LITTLE boy asked his mother, “How am I to be saved, Mother?” “By coming to Jesus.”

“But I have heard that I must be good, or else God will not save me,” rejoined the boy.

“My boy, Jesus died to save the bad, not the good. It is your badness, not your goodness, you must carry to Jesus.”

“That is good news,” cried the boy, “how cruel it was to tell me God would have nothing to do with me unless I was good.”

“Yes, it was,” replied the mother, “you can’t be good until you carry your badness to Jesus.”

The little boy did carry his badness to Jesus, and found that all goodness was in Him, “who forgiveth all iniquities.”

He must have been made very happy, for he could know that all his iniquities were laid on Jesus, when He suffered on the cross; and that God would never remember them against him.

“Blessed (happy) are they whose inquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.” Rom. 4:7, 8.

ML 10/07/1900

"A Covert from Storm and From Rain."

OUR picture shows us three little girls sitting on a gnarled root, under an old umbrella. If you will take a look at the umbrella, with the large hole in it, and the cover drawn back from the ribs, you will think they have not a very good protection from the storm and the rain. But there does not seem to be any rain falling! Perhaps the little girls can see dark clouds up through the leaves of the large trees under which they are sitting; and maybe they hear the low thunder muttering and know that a storm is at hand; and so they have dropped their flowers, and each has taken her kitty in her arms, and they are huddled together under the old umbrella.

They do not look at all afraid; their faces are bright and happy. Why should they fear, for help is at hand. See in the picture, in front of the little girls, there is part of a man’s foot, and there is an umbrella, that he has evidently brought to shelter them, and they peep out with swell pleased faces from under the old one. Perhaps they and their kitties will all be safe home before the storm comes on!

Now I want to tell you about “a place of refuge,” “a covert from storm and from rain,” of which God’s word speaks. The storm of God’s wrath is coming upon this world, by and bye, because of its wickedness. Its pleasures and its amusements may go on for a little time yet; its wickedness may be unpunished a little longer; but “the wrath of the Lord of hosts” will awake; “the day of His fierce anger” will come. He will then “punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity.” Blessed indeed it is for all those who know the Lord and who are therefore sheltered from this dreadful, coming wrath. We do not like to think of storms, but if we know that storms must come, it is happy to have a shelter provided. And those who are sheltered under the precious blood of Jesus need not fear the coming storm of God’s wrath, for they will be taken safe home to the Father’s house before the storm bursts upon this poor world.

They are far more secure, and much more sure of reaching home in time, than the little girls in the picture are; for the word of Him who has all power in heaven and on earth is that He will keep His own out of the hour of trial which shall come upon all the world.

But there are storms through which we have to pass while we are yet in the world—storms of sorrow and of trial—suffering, sickness, bereavements, distress of circumstances, and many other things to sorely try us. My dear young readers may not know much of these storms, but they will know something of them, and as they grow older they will know yet more of the storms of this life. And is there no refuge here before we reach “the Father’s house”? Oh! yes,

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Ps. 46:1.

We can take all our trials and sorrows to Him, and His ear will be open to hear what we have to say, and His arm will be stretched out to give us help. And when we have learned the lesson God has for us in the sorrow, He will bid the storm to cease. How beautifully this refuge is described in Isa. 25 :4. “Thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat.” May you all, dear children, find this blessed refuge and hiding place!

ML 10/14/1900

God's Grace to a Family in Bermuda.

Next came Rosalie, the niece, who had been a member of the family since her mother’s death, in her early childhood. One day, shortly after the other girls had been turned to the Lord, Rosalie’s aunt told her that the Lord was going to take His people up to heaven, and Satan would roam down here upon earth for a time; she then asked her if she would like to see the rest of them go to be with the Lord and she left down here “running about with Satan!” This question arrested Rosalie’s attention and she then began to be exercised about her soul. One evening after they had returned from one of the little meetings they sat and talked until between one and two o’clock; they were all so deeply interested in spiritual matters that this was no uncommon occurrence. When they finally separated for the night, Rosalie went to her room and fell upon her knees and asked the Lord to save her. When she got to bed, it was only to weep. Mabel, who was in the same room, said, “What is the matter, Rosalie, are you sick?”

Rosalie made no reply; then Mabel said to her, “Pray again.” So Rosalie knelt down again and asked the Lord to save her, and she told the Lord she would not get off her knees until He saved her. She was very wrong in this, for it is not for us, poor worms of the dust, to say to the Lord what He shall do, or what He shall not do; and He allowed Rosalie to find this out; she stayed on her knees until she got weary and tired waiting and then she got into her bed; but she sat up in bed, thinking the Lord would hear her, and she was waiting to see what He would do. The Lord always answers faith, but must ever rebuke anything that savors of presumption. Rosalie was not saved in the time or way that in her mind she had marked out, but the Lord graciously gave answer to her expectant heart. While waiting in bed, a light, like a flash of lightning, passed before her. She looked upon this as the Lord’s answer and felt very happy. Wearied out, she fell asleep. On waking next morning, this comforting verse came to her, “let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me.” Jno. 11:1. This was precious to her, confirming, as it did, her thoughts of the night before. She believed in Jesus, and the trouble of her heart was gone.

How wonderful is God’s grace! In two short weeks this entire household had been brought to know Jesus and been made to rejoice in Him. Truly His grace and love are past finding out! But now came a testing time for this family, brought in so short a time, to know and trust in the Lord. Satan likes to disturb God’s people if he can and he began in this case to stir up persecution against this dear family. Mr. I., who for years dad employed Mr. W. to do his farming, discharged him because he “had left the church.” This brought trial and sorrow upon the household but they waited upon God, to see what He would do for them. Mrs. W. went to Mrs. I., after a time, not wishing her to feel that she held anything in her heart against her. Mrs. I. told her that she had not known, at the time, of the discharge, and she was disappointed about it when her husband told her of it; she also said that they were all dissatisfied about it, for they had lost greatly by taking a man who was not so faithful and good as Mr. W. had been.

After some time Mr. I. discharged his new man and posted a notice for another. Mr. W., seeing this, went to him and offered to work for him, and he was very glad to take Mr. W. back. Thus the Lord thwarted this effort of Satan and over—ruled all for blessing.

Other persecutions came to this devoted family, of which we may speak again.

ML 10/14/1900

Jesus Healing the Man with the Palsy.

In our last little talk about Jesus, we were noticing how He cleansed a leper. Now we want to see Him healing a man who was sick with the palsy.

Jesus had left the “desert place,” where He had gone to escape the crowds, and was returned to Capernaum. The word soon got out that He was in the house, and the crowds gathered, so that the house was filled inside, and thronged about the door, while Jesus preached the word to them. You will find this in the second chapter of Mark.

While Jesus was preaching to these people, four men came, carrying on a bed a man sick with the palsy. They wanted to bring this man to Jesus, to be healed. But the crowd was so great that they could not get in at the door. So they took the man upon the roof of the house, and lifted the tiling, so as to make a hole in the roof, and then they let the sick man down into the presence of Jesus. These men believed that Jesus would heal the sick man, and so they did not allow difficulties to hinder. If they could not get in at the door, they could make a hole in the roof, and get the man to Jesus in that way.

“When Jesus saw their faith, He said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” It does not speak of the sick man’s faith, though he may have had faith, too; but it speaks of the faith of the men who brought him. Jesus saw their faith and answered it too. And if some of you will bring some poor sinner to Jesus to be saved, counting on His grace to do it, I think He will answer your faith also.

But this man not only had a sick body which needed healing; his sickness was connected with sins, and so Jesus said to him, “Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” If there was power in Jesus to heal the sick body, there was also grace in Him to forgive the man’s sins. Do you not think this was very blessed? He forgave the sins first, and then healed the body.

But do you think this grace in Jesus made everybody glad? No, there were some present who did not love Jesus. They did not believe in Him, and thought Him only a sinful man like themselves. They did not know that Jesus was God as well as man; and so when He spoke about forgiving sins, they called it blasphemy, and said “Who can forgive sins but God only?” This was the reasoning of their wicked hearts. But Jesus let them know that He could read their hearts, and that He could do what none of their doctors could, and what no mere man could do. Could any but God put strength into a palsied man, so that he could immediately rise up and walk? No, God alone could do this. Well, then, Jesus was God, for He said to the sick man, “Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house.” And at once the man rose up before them all, and went out with his bed. If Jesus, then, was God, could He not also forgive sins? Yes, God was in Jesus, forgiving sins. The palsied man’s case was proof of this. The people were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, “We never saw it on this fashion.” No, they had never seen such power and grace. Oh! how it should have drawn their hearts to Jesus.

And how is it with you, dear children? Do your hearts respond to the love of Jesus, who came down from heaven to earth to heal and to forgive? His love is just the same now as then, and if you believe in Him, you will get your sins forgiven. And if He has forgiven you, then you can do like the four men; you can bring others to Jesus, that He may save them too.

ML 10/14/1900

Two Little Chicks in a Cistern.

I KNOW a little girl who has two pet chickens. One days these pets fell into a cistern. There was no water in it, and the little chicks were making a great noise. They wanted to get out, but could not. They did not want to stay in that deep place, but unless some person who had power to take them out, did so, the poor little things would have died. So the little girl and I went to the cistern. I said to her, “Now you get down and take them out.” She had the desire to do it, but she had not the power. She could not save the lives of those little chickens. She knew I wanted to see the little things safe out of that place, and she knew I had power to take them out, so she said, “You take them out,” and I did. If I had not the power I could not have taken the little chickens out. You see it needed two things in order to take those little pets out of the cistern. It needed a desire, and it needed power. When I saw the little chickens safe out of the place they were in, and enjoying their freedom, I spoke to the little girl of what a wonderful Saviour the Lord Jesus is. He saw us unable to take ourselves out of the condition we were in, as lost sinners, and He loved us so much as to die on the cross to save us, and by His love and power He provided a salvation for us, and now all who put their trust in Him are saved. How very kind it was of Him to suffer and die for us upon the cross, so as to satisfy God about our sins, and then offer us a full and a free salvation. And when we are saved, through simple faith in Him, what peace and liberty we should enjoy.

Some of the little ones who read MESSAGES OF LOVE have written to us that they know what peace with God is, and are happy in His love. If all our little readers could say the same, what cause for thankfulness it would be. May we all learn a lesson from the little chickens in the cistern.

I’m not too young for God to see;

He knows my name and nature too;

And all day long He looks at me,

And sees my actions through and through.

He listens to the words I say,

And knows the thoughts I have within;

And whether I’m at work or play,

He’s sure to know it if I sin.

ML 10/14/1900

Crowned.

WHAT a pretty scene this is! A young maiden out in the woods, seated on a mossy bank by the side of a brook; her feet perhaps bathed in its gently gliding waters, and all about her a forest of bushes and beautiful leaves. On her lap is a bunch of flowers, and some little daisies have fallen at her side. She is placing on her head a lovely crown which her hands have dexterously woven from the sweet flowers. But, beautiful as it looks in the picture, it is a crown that will soon fade and die. There is, however, a crown that will never fade and never pass away. Would you like to have such a crown?

Perhaps you have heard of the races of olden times, and how the person who won the race was crowned with a wreath of laurel. This crown was much prized, but it was soon gone.

Now there is another race to run; a race in which not one only, but all who run will receive a crown. This race is the Christian pathway, and the crown received by those who run this race will not fade away like the laurel wreath, or the wreath of flowers; it will be always fresh. It will never become tarnished and lose its beauty as do the crowns of gold and precious stones such as the kings and queens of earth wear.

It will be a wonderful crown—a crown that will last forever. I wish that every dear child who reads this paper may win this unfading crown that cannot be corrupted or defiled, and that will never be taken from them.

Does someone ask, how can I win it? If you will turn to the twelfth verse of the first chapter of James, you will see that the Lord has promised “the crown of life” to them that love Him. Those who believe on Him have everlasting life, and all who have this life will receive “the crown of life.”

God’s word speaks also of two other crowns, “the crown of righteousness” and “the crown of glory.”

It is those who “love His appearing,” who live day by day, and hour by hour, for Jesus, that will receive “the crown of righteousness.” And “the crown of glory” will be given to those who serve Him faithfully.

May you each one be found in the blessed race that will end in glory!

ML 10/21/1900

"Jesus Died for Me."

I WILL tell you, my dear young readers, of a little boy whom the Lord took to be with Himself a short time ago. It was my privilege to nurse him and hear the above sweet confession from his lips. Scarcely eight summers had rolled over his head; he was a noble, generous hearted boy, foremost in all the games with his school-fellows, among whom he was a general favorite.

Now, disease was doing its deadly work on his once active limbs. Scarlet fever in its worst, malignant form had seized him; rapidly he grew worse, and the doctor gave no hopes of his recovery. Having had this dear child for some time under my care, I had become much attached to him, and now, the thought that he was so soon to be taken made my heart sink within me. Returning to the next room I threw myself on my knees, and earnestly pleaded with the Lord, that if He took him, He would enable him to confess Christ; and again looking to Him for the suited portion of His word, I went to the bedside of the little sufferer. Taking his feverish hand in mine I said, “Johnny, you are very ill; what would you like?” He looked up and said, “To be with Jesus, for He died for me.”

The commencement of the fourteenth chapter of Matthew seemed much laid upon my heart, which, after reading, he exclaimed in his childish manner—

“Poor John shut up in prison, and then beheaded,” but quickly added, “Ah, he had the best of it after all, for he exchanged the prison walls to be with the Lord;” and many other sweet remarks which time will not permit me to enter into. Knowing his hours were numbered, I felt anxious till I knew for certain he was saved, so I said, “Johnny, suppose the Lord should see fit to call you away, what about your soul? Could you say of yourself, as you did of John the Baptist, you would have ‘the best of it’?” With an earnestness in his languid eyes, he exclaimed—

“Jesus died for me. Jesus had the nails put into His hands and feet, bore all the punishment I deserved, on Calvary’s cross, so that I and every poor sinner might have the best of it.”

Strange yet sweet expression, “he had the best of it.”

Dear little ones who read this narrative, how is it with you? If you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ you will, as dear Johnny exclaimed, have the best of it. And, like the subject of this narrative, be enabled to say, “Jesus died for me.”

Words fail to express the deep gratitude to the Lord I felt for permitting me to hear such a sweet confession from those lips which were so soon to be closed in death. A few hours after the little one became delirious, and the following day the Lord gently took him to be with Himself, for of such is the “kingdom.” His remains are interred in a village churchyard not far from where he lived. And on his tombstone are inscribed the words of his favorite text, “Suffer little children to come unto Me.”

Dear young reader, again let me entreat of you to come to Jesus now; you may never have another opportunity. How uncertain is life! Your now healthy limbs may soon be cold in death.

The subject of this narrative was suddenly called away. Only ill two days; previous to that, he was looking the picture of health and making the air ring with his merry laugh as he joined in the games of his companions. Suppose you should be thus suddenly called away! do not put off this solemn question any longer. Where are you going to spend your eternity?

May He bless the reading of this narrative to many a little one.

ML 10/21/1900

Jesus Calling Levi.

AFTER Jesus healed the palsied man, He went out by the seaside, and taught the people who gathered to Him there. “And as He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said to him, Follow Me, And he arose and followed Him,” (Mark 2:14).

We learn from Matt. 9:9, that Levi was also named Matthew. He became one of the twelve apostles of Jesus, and was the writer of the Gospel according to Matthew. At the time Jesus called Levi, he was a publican. The Jews were under the Roman yoke, and were paying tribute to Caesar, and the publicans were those who collected the taxes from the Jews for the Roman government, and because of this they were despised by the Jews, and counted among the bad people.

The Jews, like many people now, did not realize that all men were sinners, and needed a Saviour; and so they condemned Jesus because He called Levi to be a disciple. But Jesus had not come to save people who thought themselves good. He came to save sinners, and so He called this despised publican. Levi was drawn to Jesus, and at once he arose and followed Him. Then we find that he made a great feast in his house (see Luke 5:29), and “many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and His disciples.”

Why did Levi make this great feast? Ah! he was a sinner and he had found the sinner’s Friend. He had found Jesus the Saviour, and he wanted others to become acquainted with Him, and hear Him speak the words of life. So he made a feast, and gathered in a great multitude of publicans and sinners.

But the scribes and Pharisees did not consider themselves sinners, and so they blamed Jesus because He ate and drank with such people. “How is it,” they said, “that He, eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners.” “When Jesus heard it, He saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Yes, Jesus is the Friend of sinners. He came to save people who own themselves sinners. He did not come to save righteous people, for there were none. The scribes and Pharisees thought themselves righteous, and so they condemned Jesus, instead of coming to Him as sinners like the rest. They rejected the only Saviour, and perished in their sins.

And is it not just the same now? A great many people think they are all right, and do not need Jesus. A day will come when they will see that they had deceived themselves, and believed a lie, to their eternal ruin. God’s word says that “all have sinned,” and that “there is none righteous, no not one.” So if we claim to be righteous, we make God a liar. Is it not better, dear children, to believe what God says, and to take Jesus as our Saviour? He came to call sinners, and He is their Friend. He has laid down His life for them, that He might save them. And He does save every poor, needy sinner that comes to Him. Have you come to Him?

ML 10/21/1900

Rabbits.

NEAR where I live there is a man that has some rabbits. He keeps them in a yard with a fence around it, so they cannot get away nor dogs get in and chase them. Once I went near the fence, and said, “Bunny, nice bunny!” and I thought the rabbits would come up to me. But they were so frightened, they ran away very fast to the other end of thy yard. Then I threw a few lettuce leaves over into the yard, and I thought when they saw them they would come back to me. Do you think they did?

No, they did not. But after I went off a little distance, they came to the place where the lettuce was and ate it so fast. If they had only known it, I would not have hurt them, but they did not, so they stayed away.

Now, as these rabbits were afraid of me, and would not take what I was wanting to give them, so, many people are afraid of God, and don’t know that He loves them, and is waiting to do them good, like I waited, when I said, “Bunny, nice bunny!” What good thing is it that God is holding out to all the people in this world, that they may have if they will only take it? It is salvation, and all that is needed to be done to have it, is for them to believe the Lord Jesus died on the cross to wash away all their badness and that He is now in heaven where they will go some day to be with Him and like Him forever.

Have you taken God’s gift of salvation?

I am going to tell you of another rabbit I saw a few days ago, I was riding on the street car at night, and I was sleepy because it was bedtime. We were going through the city, and there were many teams and other street cars going past us all the time, and a band went marching by, and then the bell on our car kept going “clang, clang.” All these things made so much noise I could not sleep, so I looked around in the car, and what do you think I saw? A boy was sitting right across from me with something black moving around inside his coat just below his tie. It was a cunning little rabbit! Wasn’t it strange to see a little baby rabbit in a car? He put Bunny down on the seat by him, but it ran right back to him and climbed into his coat just above where it was buttoned at the top, and went to sleep.

“It isn’t afraid to go anywhere with me,” the boy said, “as long as I carry it, it’ll go anyplace down town without being frightened.”

Pretty soon he got out of the car, and you ought to have seen how nicely Bunny woke up, looked around at all the strange lights, and then shut his eyes and went to sleep, happy because he was inside the boy’s coat.

How this reminds us of the care and protection the Lord Jesus gives to all those who put their trust in Him.

“He shall gather the lambs with His arm and carry them in His bosom.” Isa. 40:11.

His lambs are the children who know that He died for their sins. Are you one of His lambs? If so, you need never be frightened, even to die, for Jesus will hold you, and He will never let you go.

Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me,

Bless Thy little lamb tonight,

Through the darkness be Thou near me

Keep me safe till morning light.

ML 10/21/1900

Papa's Coming.

HERE are three little faces looking out of the window of a rude looking hut. But if the house in which these children live is poor, it is not without its attractions, for pretty plants and flowers are at the window, and some of them are vining gracefully over it. And the little inmates of the cottage look well fed and happy. Something pleasant seems to be attracting them; the chubby little fellow, with his chin on his arm, looks very contented; the older brother seems quite amused; the sister has a large cloth in her hand that she has evidently been waving.

What are they watching, or for whom are they waiting? Maybe Papa is coming in from his work! It is very nice where little ones love their papa and wait for his home coming each evening.

Children cannot bestow too much love and honor upon their parents. God’s word to them is, “Honor thy father and mother—that it may be well with thee.” And it is a most solemn thing that God pronounces a curse on the one, who sets “light by his father or his mother.” Sometimes little boys and girls speak disrespectfully and impatiently to their parents; this is very displeasing to the Lord and will be sure to bring sorrow upon them sooner or later. I hope, dear children, that you will earnestly seek to please your parents and that you will honor and obey them. Do not allow the cross face and impatient words.

“Children obey your parents in all things; for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.” Col. 3:20

ML 10/28/1900

Jesus and the Children of the Bridechamber.

If you will read Mark 2:18,19, you will find how Jesus came to sneak of His disciples as the children of the bridechamber. John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees were accustomed to fast. But the disciples of Jesus did not fast. So they came to Jesus and asked, “Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Thy disciples fast not?” Then we get the answer of Jesus: “Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.”

When a marriage is to take place, people do not think it a time for fasting, but rather feasting. Now Jesus had come as the Bridegroom of Israel, and the disciples were His near friends—the children of the bridechamber. The time for Israel’s blessing was come, if they would receive Christ, and the disciples had tasted the blessing. The blessing was going on in the works of healing, and in the preaching of Jesus. Many were receiving blessing, and were being filled with joy. This was not the occasion for fasting. The disciples of Jesus could not fast amid such joy.

But it would not be always so. Jesus, the Bridegroom of Israel, would be rejected and put to death, and then the children of the bridechamber would be filled with sorrow. While Jesus was with them they were full of joy, and looked for Him to establish His throne in Israel. When He was crucified this hope was taken away, and then came sorrow and fasting.

But may we not learn a lesson from this Scripture about fasting? Jesus did not say the Pharisees did wrong to fast. And we may be quite sure. John and his disciples did right to fast, and also the disciples of Jesus when He was taken from them. Why, then, should not Christians now also fast? Have any of you ever fasted? Have you ever thought about it? Are there not times now when Christians would do well to fast? In fasting we express our dependence on God, as we do also in prayer. It is also an expression of our sorrow, and of our humbling ourselves before God when there is a wrong state of things. In fasting also we are made to feel our own weakness and helplessness, while we appeal to the goodness and mercy of God who alone can help us.

In Matt. 6:16-18, Jesus gives instructions how to fast. It is not to be a mere show of piety. We are not too fast to be seen of men, but too fast for the eye of God. And we may be sure He will take notice. “Thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.”

We might fast for a day, or longer, without taking any food at all; but God would not have us injure our bodies, and so we may fast without abstaining altogether from food. We find (Dan. 10) that Daniel fasted and mourned three whole weeks. He took some food during that time, but he did not take any flesh, or wine, or pleasant food. He was mourning over the condition of Israel, and longed to get God’s mind about that guilty people. And when he fasted and prayed, God revealed His mind to him.

Again I would ask, have we no good reasons for fasting now? Do we not see evil and failure and sin in the people of God now? And is not this an occasion to mourn and fast? Do we not see multitudes of sinners all around us, hardening themselves against the gospel, and going to destruction? And does not this, too, call for prayer and fasting? I have heard of a servant of the Lord who fasted on Saturdays, in view of preaching the gospel to sinners on the Lord’s day, and whose preaching was greatly owned of God in the conversion of souls. We find also in the Acts that Christians fasted in connection with the Lord’s work. See Acts 13:1-4 and 14:23. Have these Scriptures no voice for us now? You who are Christians, and especially you who are older think of this. If you have any great burden take it to God with fasting and prayer and see if He will not answer you. Indeed I am quite sure He will if you do this in faith. His faithfulness has been often proved and never known to fail. But He would have us take our right place before Him—the place of dependence expressed in prayer; and fasting may often be the fitting accompaniment of prayer. “This kind goeth not out, but by prayer and fasting.” Matt. 17:21.

ML 10/28/1900

Little Bessie Morgan; or, "Just Going to."

“MOTHER, isn’t Harry very provoking? He promised to take me strawberrying with him, and now he’s gone and left me,” cried Bessie, winking back her tears.

“Our Harry broken his promise!” Her mother looked as if she could hardly believe it.

“Why, no, Mother; I suppose not exactly. You see he said I might go if I would be ready at two o’clock, and I was just going to put on my things, when he started off as hard as he could run. There he is now, away down the other side of the common,” she added with a little sob.

“And it is a quarter past two. Why did you not get ready in time?”

“I didn’t think it was so late. Besides, I was going as soon as I had finished Dolly’s apron. But Harry said the rest were waiting, and he could not stay another minute.”

“And you don’t blame him, Bessie? He had no right to keep the other children waiting. I am sorry you have lost your afternoon’s pleasure just because you were behind time; but you can do nothing now but make the best of it, and learn that while you are just going to, your chance may be just gone.”

Bessie drew a deep sigh and at last sat down to her book. By and bye her mother put down her work-basket and went out of the room, saying: “Bessie, dear, look after the baby, and don’t let him go out of your sight.”

“Yes, Mother, I’ll watch him. Here, Birdie, come and see what Bessie has got.”

Baby took the doll she gave him, took off its head, pounded the floor with it, shook it as a cat would a mouse, and then crept off on an, exploring expedition. Presently Bessie heard a crash and a cry that made her heart stand still. She rushed into the next room, and there sat baby Dick covered with bits of broken glass and a little stream of blood running down his forehead. He had pulled over and broken a vase on his own head.

His screams soon brought their mother, and while she was bathing his wound, Bessie stood by, saying, “I had missed him, and was just going after him when I heard him cry. Poor little Dick!”

“If you had only gone, my daughter, instead of meaning to go,” was the quiet answer; “he would have been saved this sad wound.”

When Bessie’s mother went up to bed with her that night, she asked: “Has this been a pleasant day to my little girl?”

“No, Mother, it has been the worst kind of day. First I was late at school, then I couldn’t go with Harry, and worst of all, poor baby got hurt.”

“And every misfortune has happened because you were just going to do, instead of doing.”

Bessie unlaced her shoes silently. At last she said, “But I never mean to be late.”

“Of course you don’t. But the mischief is, my dear child, that you feel as if it were well enough as long as you are just going to do your duty. Do it. Don’t stop to mean to do it.”

She spoke so earnestly that Bessie looked up into her face, and said, “Why, Mother, what makes you care so much about it? Do you think I am so very bad?”

Her mother took her in her arms, and answered, “I am sick at heart, Bessie, because I am afraid ‘just going to’ will spoil your whole life. It cheats you of your pleasure and hinders you from your duties.”

And how true this is, dear children, of many, in regard to their soul’s salvation. They intend to be saved some time, though they keep putting it off; but their opportunity may go by, and when, too late and in torment, they may say, I was just going to. May it not be so with our dear little readers. Dear children, decide NOW for Christ, accept Him NOW as your own Saviour, believe in Him as the One who died for you, and bore your sins and your punishment on the cross; and then there will be no judgment for you.

ML 10/28/1900

A Question Answered.

ON page 60 our young readers were requested to tell us if they thought Freddie’s answer was right when he gave as the reason for thinking that he was the Lord’s, “BECAUSE I BEHAVE WELL.” We are pleased that some of our little readers have taken up this question, and we give the letter of one in full as his thoughts are quite right.

“DEAR SIR:—I thought I would write a little letter telling that Freddie’s answer was not right. One may know that he is the Lord’s, if he believes on the Lord that He bore all his sins on the cross and died for him; he would be one of the Lord’s dear ones, and he would be happy, and would spend eternity with, the Lord and all His people in glory. And they shall reign forever with the Lord.

How sweet this verse is, ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ Yours truly,

P. R.”

The child who wrote this letter is about nine years of age. I trust that many of our little readers, like dear Paul, may know that Jesus bore all their sins when He hung upon the cross, for this is true for all who believe in Him, and knowing this they will know that Jesus is their Lord and their Saviour, and that they are His. Then they will want to learn how to behave well, and thus please Jesus who has bought them with His blood.

ML 10/28/1900

Now.

THREE little letters form a word

Of import vast and great,

A solemn word on which may hang

Our everlasting state.

The word is NOW—a little word,

Yet spoken by the Lord,

Recurring oft, again, again,

Throughout the written word.

NOW is the free, accepted time,

NOW is salvation’s day,

NOW whosoever will may come,

NOW Christ’s the Life, the Way.

NOW pardon’s offered full and free,

NOW heaven is open wide,

NOW peace is offered through the blood

Of Jesus crucified.

ML 10/28/1900

Bible Questions for November.

The answers are to be found in the gospel of Matthew, and the first letter of each answer will spell the name which, being interpreted, is “God with us.”

1.What prophet said, “Seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive”?

2.Give the name of one who came early on the first day of the week to see the sepulcher.

3.Give the words following these: “But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart”, —

4.Give the rest of this verse, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying”,—

5.When the servants said to the householder, “Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up,” what did he answer?

6.When Peter asked the Lord how often he should forgive his brother that sinned against him, how many times did He say?

7.Give the words following these, “The last state of that man is worse than the first.”

8.What did Jesus say to the fig tree that had nothing but leaves?

Answers to Questions of October 7th.

1. “Macedonia.” 2 Cor. 11:9

2. “Ye are our epistle”, etc. 3:2

3.“Giving no offence,” etc. 6:3

4.“Receive us; we have,” etc. 7:2

5.“And to the other,” etc. 2:16

6.“Casting down imaginations,” etc. 10:5

7.“Eve.” 11:3

8.“I rejoice, therefore,” etc. 7:16

9.“Silvanas.” 1:19

10.“So that contrariwise,” etc. 2:7

11.“Unspeakable words,” etc. 12:4

12.“For we which live,” etc. 4:2

13.“For the letter killeth,” etc. 3:6

14.“In weariness and painfulness” 11:27

15.“Cast down, but not destroyed,” 4:9

16.“In the mouth of two or three,” etc.” 13:1

17.“Even as ye also are ours,” etc. 1:14

18.“Now He which establisheth us,” 1:21

19.“Titus.” 8:23

20.“For the weapons of our warfare,” 10:4

21.“Of the Jews five times,” etc. 11:24

22.“Redound to the glory of God.” 4:15

23.“The grace of the Lord Jesus,” 13:14

24.“He which soweth sparingly,” etc. 9:6

25.“Exceeding and eternal,” etc. 4:17

26.“Examine yourselves,” etc. 13:5

“My grace is sufficient for thee.” 12:9

ML 11/04/1900

Old Testament Lessons.

Creation. Gen. 1.

THOSE who believe God’s word, know more about the creation than all the wise men who rely on their wisdom to find it out. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear;” (Heb. 11: 3) that is, God spoke and they came into existence—made out of nothing. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” We are not told when it was created. Millions of years may have passed before what is mentioned in the rest of the chapter took place. We are not told of the condition of the earth, or of what changes it went through, except an allusion to it in Isaiah 45:18, to let us know that God did not create it at the first, “without form and void.” It must therefore have fallen into that condition.

God begins to work and brings order out of confusion, fitting it for the habitation of man. Read what He did each day, and how He chose to do it. Then when it was all ready, God saw that it was good. (v. 25.) God had divided light from darkness, water from land, clouds from seas. He filled the earth with fruits and herbs—all kinds of food. He made the animals, the birds of the air, the fishes of the sea, the beasts of the earth. The sun, moon and stars were set in their relation to the earth to order its time, before it was said, “Let us make man.” 26th v. The creation of man stands by itself and takes a higher character than the rest of God’s creation, and man is made in God’s image, after His likeness, and set over all creation as head. Then “God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.” The work was finished; and there was nothing to mar it. God rested the seventh day and blessed and sanctified it. How soon that rest was to be spoiled by man’s sin!

God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” We are here shown the Godhead (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) consulting and acting together. They act in unison in all they do, as we may see in studying the Bible. For instance, in Luke 15, the shepherd, the woman, and the father point to the Godhead’s love and compassion over returning sinners.

Now, creation has fallen through man’s sin, and God has begun a new one, for the old one cannot be mended again. Man cannot again be innocent, but God has brought in righteousness, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Yes, dear young friends, we need not fear to trust this Saviour God now. Christ is risen from the dead; “quickened by the spirit,” “raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,” and “when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” God could speak world’s into existence, but to redeem our souls it needed that His own Son should die. Dear children, you are born into this fallen creation, sinners. Tell me, do you yet belong to God’s new creation? If you have trusted Jesus, you are a new creature in Christ Jesus.

“Jesus died, and we died with Him,

Buried in His grave we lay,

One with Him in resurrection,

Now in Him in heaven’s bright

day.”

ML 11/04/1900

On the Burning Mount.

If I were to ask my little readers whose picture we have before us today, most of them would perhaps answer, It is a picture of Moses. Notice the people at the foot of the mountain standing off and not daring to touch it, for it would be death to them if they came too near; and see the smoke that envelops the one who is coming down the mountain side with a great stone table in his hand, while the forked lightning plays above him! All this speaks of what we read in God’s word about Moses. Yes, this is a picture of Moses; but where has he been? Let me tell you a little of the dreadful place to which he had been called. The Lord had come down in fire on the top of Mount Sinai and the whole mountain shook greatly and there were thunders and lightnings and a thick smoke upon it; the smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace making blackness and thick darkness. The people who had come out of their tents trembled at the fearful sights and sounds. Even Moses, strong man that he was, was exceedingly frightened and began to quake with fear.

He had talked with God at the burning bush; he had seen God’s wonderful power in Egypt in sending rain and hail and sickness and death upon Pharaoh and his people, because they hardened their hearts against Him; he had seen the waters of the Red Sea roll apart and form great walls on either side, leaving a dry pathway right through the deep for the hundreds of thousands of Israel to pass over. All this, and more, Moses had witnessed, but never before had he seen such a sight as this shaking, burning mountain, and as he looked upon it he shook with fear.

The children of Israel stood off and looked up to the top of the mount and they saw “the glory of the Lord,” and it was like devouring fire. And God, who wished to talk with Moses, called him up to this spot where there was such a wonderful display of His glory. Do you think Moses could go to such a fearful spot? Yes, he heeded God’s call and went through the midst of the cloud, and smoke, and thunders, and lightnings, right up to the top of the mount. And there he communed with God, and remained forty days and forty nights. Then God gave him two tables of stone on which the commandments for the children of Israel were written, by “the finger of God.”

Our picture shows us Moses on his way down the mountain side with the tables in his hand, as he was nearing the people. He came down unhurt; and not only that, his face was shining, reflecting, I doubt not, something of the glory.

Let us learn from this, my dear young readers, that we need never fear to go if God is calling, no matter how terrible the way may seem. And another and most important thing I would like to point out to you; that is, God is no longer enveloped in thick darkness where it is death to approach. Jesus has opened the way into God’s presence by dying on the cross for us; He has stood between God and us, and by taking the stripes for the sins of all who believe on Him, He has removed all that hinders approach to God.

When you look at this picture, then think of how God has opened the way for you to come to Him through the work of Jesus for you. It is not now the burning mount with its darkness and terrors, which none could approach; No! through Jesus, our Mediator, there is now for us fulness of access into God’s presence. We can come to a throne of grace, “and obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

ML 11/04/1900

"I Don't Know Where My Home Is."

A FEW days ago a little boy came running down the street crying as hard as he could cry. We went out to him and asked him what he was crying for. He said, “I don’t know where my home is, and I want to go home.” We asked him his name and when he told us it was Gordon H. we promised we would take him home. But it was a long time before we could get the little boy to acknowledge that he was lost. He thought he was going in the right way toward his home, but instead of that he was going further away from it all the time. We asked him a number of questions, and told him we knew his mamma, and his brothers, and had often been at his house, and promised to get the horse and drive him home. At last we got him to believe we knew where his home was, and would take him there, so he stopped crying. This dear little boy was like many people today. The word of God tells them they are lost, and they say, “Oh yes, we are all lost by nature,” etc., but do not own that they are unable to do anything toward saving themselves, or that they need a Saviour, who is not only able but willing to save them. They have not found out, what little Gordon did, that they must stop trying to save themselves and let another do all for them. As soon as Gordon gave up his own will, and committed himself into our hands, and allowed us to do all for him, he was quite happy. And I think some little girl or boy who reads this will say, “He had good reason to be happy, for he was perfectly safe.” And how safe are all those who have put their trust in the Lord Jesus as their own Saviour, and how happy they should be.

“The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.

ML 11/04/1900

The Horse and the White Hen.

THERE are many lessons, dear children, we may learn from the actions of animals towards each other. Sometimes they show a great deal of selfishness, and in that they must not be imitated; but in many other cases they show a great deal of kindness and love, and this is very nice to see, whether in animals, or in children.

I want to tell you about a horse and a white hen, that were loving companions.

The hen’s name was Snow, and she would stay around the horse, whether in the stable, or out of doors. When they were in the stable, she would jump up into the manger, close to the horse’s head, and there they would both eat the corn and oats together. They did not trouble each other, nor see which would get the most, but they seemed to love each other, and the horse showed great care for the hen, as she would run under the horse, and the horse was careful not to step on her.

How nice it is to see love manifested in animals, for where true love is shown, the result is happiness; but if selfishness is shown, then quarreling and unhappiness are sure to follow. There is a verse that I would like to have you learn:

“Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Eph. 4:32.

This scripture is written to those who know their sins are forgiven, and if you want to know how to forgive, you must first know what it is to be forgiven. God forgives us, for Christ’s sake, not because we have been sorry for our sins long enough, or because we have prayed long enough, but when we believe on Christ, and what He has done for us at the cross, in being punished for our sins instead of us, then God forgives us, for His sake.

Oh, think, dear children, how God loves you, and how He freely forgives all who believe in Jesus! So, if you know what it is to have all your sins forgiven for Christ’s sake, you must be willing to forgive others who may wrong you, and try to be kind to all.

If you return evil for evil, you will not be happy, nor will the Lord be pleased. May you remember to be “kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another.”

ML 11/11/1900

Jesus and the New Piece of Cloth, and the New Wine.

JESUS had been speaking of the days when the bridegroom should be taken away from the children of the bride-chamber. This referred to His being rejected and put to death by the Jews. And this meant a great deal. The Jews were God’s chosen earthly people, a nation separated from all others, upon whom God had bestowed His choicest earthly blessings. He had given them His law, and a priesthood, and a system of sacrifices, and a temple, and every means of self-improvement, so that they might perfect themselves as men in the flesh.

Now, their rejection of Jesus proved that all this had failed. The system of Judaism did not profit them. They could observe all their religious ceremonies, and at the same time murder the Son of God. This showed that the religious system of Judaism could not make men righteous, nor make them love God. For this it was entirely worthless.

Through the death and blood shedding of Jesus God brought in another way of blessing for man—a new way altogether. The blood of Jesus which was shed made atonement for sin, and on the ground of this, God acts in grace toward man, and blesses him through faith in Jeans. In this new way of blessing, God forgives the sins of those who believe in Jesus, and brings them into the place of children, and gives them the Holy Ghost, and bestows upon them all the favor He bestows on Christ. This new thing is Christianity.

Now, Mark 2:21, 22 shows that this new thing was like a new piece of cloth, and like new wine. And the new piece of cloth was not to be put as a patch on the old garment of Judaism, to mend that which was worthless; and it was not to be put as new wine into old bottles which were ready to burst. No, it was to be a new garment altogether, and the new wine was to be put in new bottles. Christianity was a new way of blessing, and it was not to be connected with Judaism at all. The two would not agree together, and the old bottles of Judaism could not hold such a great thing as Christianity. The bottles would burst, and the new wine would be spilled. Judaism was to be laid aside like an old worn out garment, and Christianity was to take its place.

But perhaps you are asking why the new wine would burst the old bottles. Well, there is a great deal of energy in new wine, and it expands for a time. And the bottles which the Jews used for wine were large bottles made out of goatskins. After the skin was cured, they would sew up the skin, so that it would be nearly as large as the goat from which it came, and about the same shape. Now when they put new wine into one of these new bottles, the energy of the wine would stretch the skin all that it would bear, before the wine ceased to expand. And if they took this old bottle that had been already stretched, and put new wine in it, it would not stretch any more, and the new wine would burst it. So they always put new wine in new bottles, or skins, and then both were preserved. This will help you to understand why Jesus uses this figure. Christianity in its freshness has a great deal of energy and power in it. It expands, and spreads abroad. It could not be kept inside the Jewish bottles. The grace that was in Christianity was to go out to the Samaritans, and the Gentiles, as well as the Jews. It could not be confined to the Jews.

Dear reader, have you tasted, have you drunk of, the precious wine of God’s grace which is in Christianity, which fills the heart with joy?

ML 11/11/1900

"The Lord's Hand Is Not Shortened, That It Cannot Save."

SOME years ago, a young Japanese, whom for the sake of convenience, we will call Mat, came from his native land, across the seas, to this country. He knew some English, having studied it in his own land.

One evening he went to a Mission Hall where the Gospel was being preached. At the close of the services, the preacher, who had noticed young Mat, went up to him, and asked him if he believed in God. He replied, “Yes, I believe there is God; He made the heaven and the earth.” The preacher then asked him, “Are you, a sinner?” “No,” he said indignantly, “I, a righteous man!” He looked at his own goodness and was far from being willing to own that he was a sinner. The preacher gave him a Testament and asked him to read it. He took it thinking he would read it and see what these people thought. He began at the beginning, as people usually do, if they wish to read a book through. As he read, he thought, these Americans are foolish to read and believe such a book.

But he read on and on, as he could find time, when he would get in from his work. He began to be attracted, and to read with deeper interest. When he came to this verse in Matthew 23, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness,” he was convicted of sin. To use his own expression, “The word of God went through and through me like a sword.” Poor Mat now felt that he was like the whited sepulchers— good on the outside, but bad within. And he felt that Jesus, the One who spoke these words, knew, just what was in him. Nobody else knew but Jesus knew, for He could read the heart. Mat could hide nothing from Him. Ah! now he owned, what he would not own the night the preacher spoke to him —that is, that he was a sinner—no longer “a righteous man.” God had spoken to him; yes, God had brought him into the light, and was showing him in the light, what he was. Thus aroused, he read on with deepening interest, until he came to John 14. In that blessed chapter he read that Jesus was the way, the truth and the life, and that the way to the

Father was through Him. He saw also that the Holy Ghost had come down to be the comforter and to teach believers all things. His soul was then filled with joy and peace in believing.

And so great was this joy that he felt that he could not, must not, keep it to himself. He thought he would go out and tell all the Japanese, in the great city in which he lived, of the wonderful salvation he had found, and he thought they would listen to the glad story and have their hearts filled with joy as his had been. This thought filling him, he started out, but when he reached some Japanese he found it was not so easy to speak to them as he had thought it would be. His courage failed him and he was not able to open his mouth to say a word.

He went back to his room, where he was staying, and prayed to the Lord about it. The next day he started out again, but still could not find courage to speak. Again he went back to his room, and this time he spent a day in fasting and prayer. A third time he went out, and then he was able to speak to others of what Jesus had done for him; but alas! he did not find their hearts so open to receive as he thought they would be.

We see from this little narrative, how God saved one who diligently read His word, although this one was in great darkness. God caused the light to enter his soul. “The entrance of Thy word giveth light.” And God used to His own glory this one who called upon Him. “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.”

ML 11/11/1900

The Love of Jesus.

JESUS loves the little ones.

How do we know?

First, because His precious word

Oft tells us so.

When He lived down here on earth,

God’s precious Son

Took the children in His arms—

Blessed every one.

Now He watches every day

From heaven above,

Keeps them safe from harm away,

Guards with His love,

Gives them food and loving homes,

Dear parents, too.

Can you find another who

Loves you so true?

And the greatest proof of all,

That love could show,

Christ came down to this poor world

Of sin and woe.

Long ago, upon the cross,

By sorrow tried,

For the sake of those He loved,

He bled and died.

Did you ever think it o’er,

Dear girl and boy?

What the gentle Saviour bore,

To bring you joy?

Oh how every child should try

Each day to make

Bright with words and actions done,

For His dear sake.

ML 11/11/1900

Be Sure Your Sin Will Find You Out.

Little Tommy was fond of sugar. One day when his mamma had stepped out of the kitchen he thought he would have a treat, so he climbed up on a chair and reached his hand down into a jar that was standing on the first shelf. Out came the little hand, full of white, beautiful looking sugar, as Tommy thought. In his haste to get all he could he stuffed his mouth full, but, alas! it was salt and not sugar, and poor Tommy’s spitting and sputtering and choking soon drew his mother to the scene of trouble.

Do not let us forget, dear children, that our sin will surely find us out, as God tells us. We may not be found at once in our sin, as little Tommy was; but sooner or later it will come out to our sorrow and shame.

Let us remember that God sees and hears all we do and say, and that all will come out—if not now, at the Judgment Seat of Christ. If we bear this in mind it will be a safeguard against many an evil, if only we are seeking to please Him.

ML 11/11/1900

Disobedience Punished.

CHARLIE M. lived with his parents, who owned a nice home in a small village of one of our Southern States. He was, as one might say, a good boy—kind, industrious, and intelligent. But he had one very grievous fault which showed itself quite often. He was inattentive when his parents told him, or forbade him to do anything, and when kindly corrected he let it go in one ear and out the other, like so many children do.

Disobedience is a very great sin in the sight of God.

As long as Charlie was under his parents’ eyes everything went oven, but hardly had he turned his back, when everything was forgotten. He did not think that the eye of God was upon him, and that it was written, “Honor thy father and thy mother,” and “My son hear the instruction of thy father and forsake not the law of thy mother.”

His disobedience soon led him to a very serious result. Not far from his home flowed a beautiful broad river, and his parents had told him not to bathe in the river, as the current was too strong for a boy of ten years. Charlie, however, paid little heed to instructions. On hot summer days he would go to the river, and wade along the bank. As no one noticed this, he grew bolder and decided to have a good swim. He was, for his age, a good swimmer, and concluded to try his skill in the fresh water the first chance he would have, and very soon the opportunity came. On a fine summer day, school closed an hour earlier than usual. “Now I can have a good swim, and still get home before Mother misses me,” thought Charlie. He looked for a quiet spot, where the water was deep, and, hastily undressing himself, leaped in. Oh, how he enjoyed the cool refreshing stream! “How foolish it is of my parents not to allow me this innocent pleasure,” thought he. With strong strokes he swam into the middle of the stream, and had no thought of returning, until he felt a weakening in his limbs. But how surprised he was when he saw the distance from the starting point. The strong current had carried him much further than he imagined, and with all his energy he tried to return. But alas! instead of getting nearer home he was driven further away. At this point in the river there was a bend, and the current was so strong that the poor boy was driven to the other side. He at once realized the dangerous position he was in, and cried for help as loud as he could. But who could hear him? Not a person was near. Exhausted in his efforts to gain the shore, and hoarse from crying for help, he could hardly keep above water.

He was losing all hope of seeing his parents again. Oh, what would he have given, had he not been disobedient! But it was too late. The deepest repentance could not change the perilous position in which he had put himself. With a sorrowful heart he cried to God to forgive his sins and save him.

Charlie’s mother had prepared his lunch for him at the usual time—as he was always very hungry when he came from school. But the time passed and Charlie did not come. His mother became anxious, and when his father returned from work, he went around inquiring about Charlie; but the boy was nowhere to be found. Neighbors and friends joined the parents in the search, but in vain. At last they found his clothes on the river bank. Now the mystery was solved. Who could describe what passed through the poor parents’ hearts, with the stern reality before them that their child, whom they had endeavored to bring up in the fear of God, had had so sad an end, through disobedience. Pale and speechless they gathered up the clothes of the missing boy and returned to their desolate home. They could not weep, as their sorrow was too great. Oh! if the poor child could have died at home in their presence! But this way, to have lost him in disobedience, was too terrible.

We will leave the parents with their sorrow, and turn to Charlie. For a while he strove with the current, but when thoroughly exhausted and without strength, he began to sink. Once more in his agony he made a desperate effort to keep above water. But what was this? A dark figure leaning over him, and with a strong arm raised him out of the water like a drowning bird. He felt safe, but immediately lost consciousness. He was very much surprised on opening his eyes, to find himself with two Indians in a little canoe, but frightened at the sight of them, for he had heard of awful deeds committed by the blood-thirsty redskins. He began to cry bitterly, and begged them to take him back to his parents. However, they paid little attention to his entreaties, as they rowed quietly away. At last one of them arose, unrolled a blanket and wrapped Charlie in it, for he was naked and began to be cold, handing him, too, a handful of roasted corn; but Charlie did not feel hungry at all. Under the Indians’ powerful rowing, the canoe flew like an arrow down the stream, further and further away from Charlie’s home and his dear parents. Towards evening he discovered that the river grew wider and wider, and found by the rocking of the canoe that they were nearing the ocean. The journey was continued in deepest silence. Charlie grew very uneasy and implored God for help.

It was night, and the moon threw her silvery light over the ocean, as the canoe neared a little island, and the Indians were preparing to land. The older of them paddled the canoe into a creek, the younger took Charlie on his muscular arms and carried him to a little hut, where an Indian squaw met them at the door. She looked at her husband in surprise, as she noticed the little boy wrapped in a blanket, and asked what he had brought for her. “A little paleface,” he answered shortly. “We fished him out of the river.” The woman eyed him closely for a while, and then suddenly grasped him in her arms and wept. Alas! she had only a few weeks before lost her only boy, who was about Charlie’s age, and her heart was still in sore distress. When she recovered sufficiently, she kindled the fire, and brought Charlie something to eat, but he could eat only a little. She then made him a little bed in a corner, covered him carefully, sitting beside him beside him to sleep, and in a few moments Charlie fell asleep.

ML 11/18/1900

Old Testament Lessons.

Adam. Gen. 2.

In reading this chapter you will notice that God’s name, from the fourth verse, is changed to the Lord God. That is His name in relationship with man.

What is told us in this chapter is not a different account of the creation, but fuller details of what was done on the sixth day.

When God made man, it was from the dust of the ground; but the form was still lifeless, till God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. How different from the brute creation. God spoke and they came into being; but man is called the offspring of God, read Acts 17:29. Creation made us the offspring of God, but redemption puts us in the place of children of God.

The Lord God planted a garden of delights, for in it was every tree pleasant to look at and good for food. Also the tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

There Adam was placed to dress and keep it. The only reserve put upon him was not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for if he ate of this he would surely die. That was asking him only to be in dependence on his Maker. And the Lord God said: “It is not good that the man should be alone.”

All the animals were brought to Adam to get their names; but among them all there was not one fitted for hire for a companion or helpmeet. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come upon Adam. And He took a rib from Adam and formed the woman, When Adam saw her he said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” So she was called woman, because she was taken out of man. So Adam was a figure of Christ, who is set over all things, and in His wonderful grace He has taken up sinners, not only to save them from eternal torment, but to be the chosen companion of Himself.

Yes, dear children, if we are trusting Christ Jesus we are close to Christ; but before He could bring us to be thus united to Him, He had to go into that deep sleep of death upon the cross, as forsaken of God for our sins.

The work is finished, and now we are united by the spirit to Christ, risen and glorified, if we are believers in Him. We are so closely united to Him, that if anything hurts us here, He feels it there on the throne, as He said to persecuting Saul: “Why persecuteth thou Me?” Acts 9:4.

So now we belong to Him and the place where He is, — that is heaven—and we are on our way to meet Him, who has won our hearts. Whom having not seen, we love; in whom, though now we see Him not, yet believing, we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:

“Since Christ and we are one,

What room for doubt or fear?

He sits upon the Father’s throne,

And we are in Him there.

The Spirit doth unite

Our souls to Him, our head,

And forms us to his image bright,

While in His steps we tread.

And grace, it is—free grace—

Which keeps us on the road,

Till we behold our Saviour’s face,

And city of our God.”

ML 11/18/1900

A Child's Question.

IN a mansion grand and stately,

On a wide and handsome street.

Lived a man of vast possessions,

With his little daughter sweet;

He had lots in many a city,

He had houses by the score,

He had broad and rolling, acres,

And a dwelling by the shore;

And he oft would tell his daughter,

As she sat with wondering eyes,

Of their worth and of their beauty

Till before her thoughts did rise,

Visions of their wondrous beauty,

And of all their wondrous worth,

Till the child-mind almost fancied

That there was as yet on earth

Not a state and not a county

Where her father did not own

Lands and farms and stately mansions,

Fruits of labor he had sown.

But into this home of comfort

Came a sorrow as a cloud:

Death will neither stay nor tarry,

At the mandate of the proud.

Rich and poor, the high and lowly,

Each must answer to the call.

Enters he the meanest hovel,

As he does the stateliest hall;

And this man of vast possessions

In his costly chamber lay,

Resting on a bed luxuriant,

Wasting by disease away.

Skilled physicians waited on him,

Loving lips pressed cheek and brow,

But the utmost skill and yearning

Could not change the verdict now.

Then one day, the learned physician

Called aside the little child,

Tenderly he stroked her tresses,

Spoke in accents low and mild:

“Do you know, my little darling,

That your father soon must go

To a far-off, far-off country—

Little darling, do you know?”

Opened then her eyes in wonder,

With a sudden strange surprise;

Then with tears and fears and trembling

To her father’s side she flies—

Climbs upon the bed beside him,

Lays her head close to his cheek,

In a sudden, dreadful anguish

That will scarcely let her speak.

Then she thinks of all his mansions—

Of the lands so broad and fair,

Of the home that must await him,

And their beauty rich and rare.

Slowly now her head she raises,

Gone the sorrow, and the fear;

Once again she smiles, then laughing,

Dashes from her eye a tear,

As she asks in accents tender:

“Papa, tell me, I would know,

Do you own a lovely mansion

In the land where you would go?

Doctor told me all about it—

How that you must go away

To a far-off, far-off country;

Have you there a mansion: say?

For the going will be pleasant

And you need not have a care,

If it is to your own mansion,

In that far-off land so fair.”

Then that stricken father faltered,

For, although he’d built with care

Many a fine and stately dwelling,

He had yet no mansion there.

What to him were now the acres

With their wealth of golden grain?

What to him were farms and houses?

What to him were earthly gain?

What to him, now he lay dying,

Were the many mansions here?

He must leave them all forever—

And he had no mansion there.

“What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own foul.” Mark 8:36.

“A wise son heareth his father’s instruction; but a scorner heareth not rebuke.” Prov 13:1.

ML 11/18/1900

Disobedience Punished.

THE sun was high in the heavens when Charlie awoke. For a while he lay gazing around, thinking of the thrilling events of the past day. His eyes filled with tears. Ah! there were no friendly parents near to speak to him, no dear little sister to throw her arms around him, nothing but a miserable hut and strange Indian faces. The woman, husband and father, were the only inhabitants of this island. A dreadful feeling of desolation came over the poor boy, and sobbing, he covered his face with his hands. The woman with heart-felt pity came in when she heard him, and tried to comfort him by kissing him. She succeeded in quieting him some. Then she went and fetched the clothes of her dead son, and soon Charlie was standing before her in his new costume. But for his white skin, you would have taken him for an Indian boy, and that, too, was to his grief; but what could he do, for his own clothes were many, many miles away on the river bank. He was deeply distressed as he stepped outside, after his plain breakfast, for in gazing far and wide, he could not see a single soul, or hut, or house. He felt himself all alone in the world, and, alas! his own disobedience had brought him into this misery. He alone was to blame, no one else. What would his good parents do now! How grieved must they be to lose their child in such a dreadful way, and tears rolled afresh down his cheeks, and sobbing, he fell on his knees and prayed to God to forgive his great sins. Oh! how bitter were the fruits of disobedience!

The following day he again implored the two Indians to take him back to his own home, but they replied in broken English that it was impossible to think of it at present, as the way was too far. Charlie told them that his father would pay them well for it; but they would not listen, otherwise they were not unfriendly toward him. The woman even clung to him with tender love; she considered him as a substitute for her dead boy, and did all in her power to divert his thoughts and to cheer him up. She took him along when she went to gather rushes and straw, with which to make mats and baskets. She showed him where the rare and lovely birds built their nests, and taught him to trace the tracks of the heron; and she showed him many herbs and roots, and taught him their different healing powers. She taught him to climb the highest trees, and gave him a bow with a quiver of arrows, highly ornamented. She encouraged him to stroll through the island, to shoot the wild birds, of which there were many in the bushes; but Charlie could not think of killing the beautiful innocent birds. The woman said one day: “The son of the white woman has not the spirit of his red brother who now sleeps in the grave, and who was always happy to take the bow and arrows and follow his father to the hunt.”

A good part of the time Charlie spent on the shore, where he watched the playing of the waves for hours in deepest silence, or gazed at a distant passing ship. Alas! not one of them came near enough to hear his shouts, or to notice his signals. What would they have looked for on an uninhabited island? But these quiet hours were not without joy and blessing for the poor lonely boy.

Here in quietness he could pour out his heart and soul uninterruptedly to God, who he knew still loved him in spite of all.

Ah! how precious were now the words which he had heard carelessly, or had learned by heart while at his home.

The God of grace used this bitter lesson, not only to show him his own deceitful heart, but the love of God, through the Lord Jesus Christ. The more Charlie knew of that love, the more his heart was filled with peace and joy.

One day the two Indians allowed him to go fishing with them. The sea was quiet and as smooth as glass, and this made the trip very pleasant. As they were nearing the mainland, Charlie was so overcome with home-longings that he cried aloud, and begged the Indians most piteously to take him back to his parents. But they got angry, and turning, rowed back to the island, and said that they would never take him along again. The woman consoled the little fellow as best she could, and when he would not be comforted, she told him that her husband made the trip up the river two or three times a year to trade the mats and baskets for food and weapons. The next trip would be in the spring, and she said that her husband would take him along then. The thought of spending the whole winter on the lonely island, made the poor boy feel very downcast. But the prospect of seeing his parents again, gave him fresh courage. To pass away the time, he helped to plait the neat baskets, with which the canoe was to be loaded next spring. He selected two very nice baskets for his mother and little sister. While at work, the woman told him about the past life of her race, when they were masters of America; the bravery and glories of their chiefs, feasts, war dances and hunting trips, etc., and that the white people robbed them of their property. Charlie listened with astonishment, to his Indian mother, and often tears came into his eyes as she told the deplorable story. Then he took her hand and exclaimed, “I shall love the Indians as long as I live!”

ML 11/25/1900

Jesus and His Disciple Sin the Cornfields on the Sabbath.

IN Mark 2:23-28, we get an account of this. Also in Matt. 12 and Luke 6. Jesus and His disciples were going through the cornfields on the Sabbath day, and the disciples began to pull the ears of corn, and rub them out in their hands. Most likely the corn spoken of was wheat, and they pulled the heads of wheat, and rubbed them in their hands to get the grain separated from the chaff, in order to eat it. In Matt. 12, we are told that the disciples were hungry, and that is the reason why they pulled the corn and ate it.

When the Pharisees saw the disciples rubbing out the corn, they accused them of doing what was unlawful. Now, if you will read Dent. 23:25, you will see it was not unlawful to eat the corn. The law allowed a man to go into a field of corn and eat what he needed; but if he took a sickle and cut some of the grain to carry it away, he was guilty of stealing. It was their rubbing out the corn on the Sabbath day that the Pharisees considered unlawful.

Jesus referred the Pharisees to what David and his men did when they were hungry: how he ate of the shewbread, which was lawful only for the priests to eat. David had been anointed king of Israel, and Saul, whom the Lord had rejected because of his disobedience, hated David and wanted to kill him. And David was fleeing for his life. It was then that he got the shewbread from the high priest and ate it. And if David could do this, could not Jesus, the true King, permit His disciples to rub out the ears of corn and eat them on the Sabbath day? Do you think, if the leaders among the Jews had received Jesus as the King of Israel, that He and His disciples would have been allowed to go hungry? Oh, no; they would have had plenty to eat. But they were hungry, and this was proof that the rulers did not care for Jesus.

Read Exod. 31:13, and Ezek. 20:12, and you will see that the Sabbath was a sign between God and Israel, a sign of the covenant that God had made with them. But Israel had broken the covenant, and He who gave them the covenant was now present among them, in Jesus, and they did not care for Him; they despised and rejected Him. Of what use to them was their Sabbath-keeping? If they rejected Him who gave them the Sabbath, the Sabbath would not do them any good. Besides, the Sabbath was made for man’s blessing and not that he might suffer. And Jesus, the Son of man, was also Lord of the Sabbath. He had given it, and He could set it aside, and indeed He was about to do so because He was going to set Israel aside, to whom He had given the Sabbath. Perhaps in our next talk about Jesus, we will say something about this in connection with Him as the Lord of the Sabbath.

But may we not learn from this Scripture that the keeping of ordinances can do us no good if we do not love Him, who gave the ordinances, and submit to them, because it is His will? Do you love Jesus? Or are you like the Pharisees who did not care for Him, and who refused His authority? Do you ask how you can love Him? I would ask, how can you help loving Him, when He loved you enough to come and die for you? Believe His love to you, and you will love Him, and love to do His will.

ML 11/25/1900

A Dream.

As a rule, it is not well to be occupied with dreams, nor even to repeat them.

Sometimes, however, God speaks through dreams and when He speaks, it is well to listen, whether His voice comes to us through His word, through a dream, or in some other way. In Job 33:15, He says: “In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed; then openeth He the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction.” We see from these words that God not only opens men’s ears to hear, but He sends the instruction home. He has a lesson for them to learn through the dream.

Let me tell you how He spoke to me once, in this way, and what lesson there was for me in it. In my dream I was going down stairs, and the front door, through which I could look, stood open. Something caused me to look toward the door, and in the air, I saw horses and chariots of fire. I called out: “Oh, Mamma, the Lord is coming,” and the same moment I felt myself shrinking backward, a feeling of my unworthiness filling me; but it was only for a moment, then I bounded forward in an ecstasy of delight. With this my dream ended, and I awoke to think and wonder. I had shortly before read that Jesus would come and take His people up to meet Him “in the clouds, in the air,” but I did not understand it, and had not thought much about it. So I meditated with wonder, upon what had come to me with such vivid distinctness. After a time I slept again, but only to have the dream repeated in another form. This time I was out in the woods, walking with a young girl, who, at that time, was my intimate companion. Only a short time before I had besought her to turn to the Lord, and had received from her this answer, “Wait for two years.”

Ah! I thought, “two years”—two years! You may be in eternity among the lost, before two years have rolled their course!

This intention on the part of my dear friend, to delay the question of salvation, had left a deep impression on my mind; and in my dream, this friend was my companion in the woods. As we walked and talked together, I was suddenly parted from her and borne gently upward, as by invisible arms, and she was left behind. Just one moment’s sad thought that she was left, then came to me an indescribable pleasure in being borne upward; then the happy consciousness that I was being taken to Jesus. The joy that then was mine, was great unspeakable—words could not picture it.

Again I awoke, and lo! it was only a dream. But it was a dream whose impression can never be effaced. And how precious the instruction that God gave to my opened ears that night!

Jesus was surely coming, and when He came He would take me, one of His unworthy, but blood purchased ones, to be with Himself. This same blessed truth, I learn from God’s word, but the Lord used this dream to first open my eyes to it.

Can you, dear children, each of you, say, “He will take me when He comes?”

ML 11/25/1900

Bible Questions for December.

The answers are to be found in the Gospel of Mark, and the first letter of each answer will spell something that was said to Bartimus.

1. What place had Jesus left when He saw the fig tree that had nothing on but leaves?

2. Of whom did Jesus say, “They have done unto him whatsoever they listed”?

3.What mount did Jesus and His disciples go to, “when they had sung an hymn”?

4.Give the verse in which these words are found, “But Me ye have not always.”

5.By what sea was Jesus walking when He saw Simon and Andrew casting a net?

6.Give the words between these two expressions, “He answereth him, and saith,” and, “bring him unto Me.”

7.Give the first part of the verse containing these words, “And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets.”

8.Who said, “The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou on My right hand,” etc.?

9.At what place was Jesus when they brought to Him a man sick of the palsy, on a bed?

10.Give the verse following these words, “What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul.”

11.To whom did Jesus first appear after He rose from the dead?

12.When John said to Jesus, “We saw one casting out devils in Thy name,” etc., what did He say?

13.What did Jesus say to the young man who said to Him, “All these have I observed from my youth”?

14.Give the verse following these words, “The Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.”

15.When the people told Bartimus to “hold his peace,” what did he cry out?

Answers to the Oct. questions were, by mistake, put in the Nov. 4th paper, instead of answers to Sept. questions, so they are inserted in this paper.

Answers to Questions of Sept. 2nd.

1. Christ.” 1 Cor. 10:4.

2. “He that glorieth, let,” etc. 1:31.

3.“Rose again the third,” etc. 15:4.

4.“If I be not an apostle,” etc. 9:2.

5.“Steplianas.” 1:16.

6.“This cup is the new etc.” 11:25.

7.“Do ye not know that,” etc. 6:2.

8.“It is sown in,” etc. 15:42.

9.“Ephesus.” 16:8.

10.“Death.” 15:26.

11.“For ye are bought with.” etc. 6:20.

12.“O grave, where is the.” 15:55.

13.“Revealed by fire.” 3:13,

14.“Or saith he it altogether,” etc. 9:10.

15.“Upon the first day of the,” etc. 16:2.

16.“Rejoiceth not in,” etc. 13:6.

17.“So run, that ye may,” etc. 9:24.

18.“I will pray with the,” etc. 14:15.

19.“Now ye are the body of,” etc. 12:27

20.“So that ye come behind,” etc. 1:7.

“Christ died for our sins.” 15:3

ML 12/02/1900

Disobedience Punished.

THE autumn months passed, and winter came with its storms and frosts. The men stayed at home now. The woman and Charlie worked busily, plaiting baskets and mats. As he was feeling more contented by this time, he began to tell them more about his home, and what he had learned while there. They were most attentive when he told them about God and the Lord Jesus Christ, and about the Holy Bible. They liked to hear the Old Testament stories, and the works of the Lord Jesus, and they were deeply touched by His sufferings on the cross. Sometimes he raised his clear voice to sing a hymn for them. Oh! how he wished that he had been more attentive at Sunday-school and at home when his father read the Bible, for he could only tell them what he knew by heart. More than once he said to them: “Our God is a great God and a God of love, but I have deeply grieved Him through my carelessness and disobedience.” How he wished to possess a Bible, so, he could read to these poor heathens.

At last the winter months were past, and Charlie’s heart leaped for joy when he saw the birds coming back to their bushes again. Their merry singing told him spring had come. He would have liked to ask the Indians when they would start on their trip, but he knew that his anxiety would anger them, so he quietly waited. He noticed the face of his Indian mother daily growing sadder, for she could not bear the thought of the boy, whom she had learned to love, leaving her. At last the long-looked-for day came. The two men began to load the canoe with the goods they had made during the winter. When everything was ready for them to start, the woman suddenly said: “I’ll go along.” Room was made for her, and they started off. During the whole trip, which lasted a great deal longer than last year, because they went up stream, Charlie was very near his Indian mother, who sat thoughtfully with her arms around Charlie’s neck. Not a word did she utter. Poor woman, her first son she had lost by death, and now she must give up her second. As they were nearing the place where Charlie should get off, her heart nearly broke, tear after tear rolled down her bony cheeks. Charlie understood something of her sorrow. He stood up, threw his arms around her, laid his head on her shoulder, and thus they remained embraced for a long time. Charlie dearly loved the poor woman, who had been such an affectionate mother to him; so he begged her to accompany him to his parents. “No, no,” she sobbed, “I could not bear to see my darling in the arms of his mother. I had hoped to keep you as my own son, and now I have to go back again, lonely and forsaken, Go to your mother, my son!” A stream of tears covered her cheeks, and her whole body trembled. Again and again she pressed the deeply moved boy on her heart and covered him with kisses. The canoe in the meantime neared the spot where Charlie had bathed the year before. Another last embrace, and shaking hands with the men, Charlie sprang on shore, while the canoe pushed from land at once. As long as the canoe was in sight, he was gazing after it thoughtfully. Hardly had it vanished around the nearest bend, when he wiped away his tears, and ran as fast as his feet could carry him towards his home. It was towards evening; the sun was sinking in the west. The door was standing open. With beating heart, Charlie stepped in, wondering whether his father or mother would know him in his Indian costume. The father sat at the window reading the Bible. He looked up with surprise, as Charlie stepped in; but did not know him. Then his mother came in from the next room. For a moment she gazed at the strange boy; then with a loud cry, sprang and closed him in her arms, laughing and weeping, covering him with kisses, and in turn came Father and Frieda, too. “O, Father! O, Mother! can you forgive my disobedience?” sobbed Charlie. Fresh embracing and joyfulness was the answer for this short confession. Charlie passed from the arms of one to the other for some time, before he could speak; and then he began to tell his wonderful story. He described his adventures from the time he was drowning, up to the present moment. He praised the kindness and love shown him by the poor Indians, and did not hold back how the Lord had spoken to his heart, and had shown him his lost condition, but had forgiven him, by His grace through the Lord Jesus Christ. With special love he told of his Indian mother—that is what he called her now—and they all regretted that she did not respond to his invitation.

When Charlie had finished his account and answered all questions, his father fell on his knees, and all followed his example. He fervently thanked God for sending back his long-lost son. For a long time the happy family sat together, and Charlie had to repeat the events during his absence, especially little Frieda, had many questions to ask. It was midnight before they got to bed. Next day the news of Charlie’s return spread like a prairie fire, and from all sides, the neighbors came to greet Charlie and congratulate the parents. Never did Charlie give his parents another cause to complain of his disobedience. He had learned a lesson which was a blessing to him through time and eternity.

ML 12/02/1900

Nearly Drowned.

SOME of you who live by the sea-side will know what a “sea-wall” means; and that it is built against the outer side of the road to prevent the tide coming up too far. It is made very strong, so that people can walk or drive along the road without fear; but as there is sometimes no railing, it is not safe for children to go too near the edge above the water. One day, in the place where I live, a child fell over, and would have been drowned, had not a kind friend been at hand to save it. He could not by himself have saved the little one; as the water, at that time of the tide, was too far below the edge of the wall: but he had with him his own young son, and seizing the lad by the heels he dropped over the edge of the wall so that the boy’s arms could reach the little one; and both were drawn safe to the top.

Now this reminds me of two things. First, that little drowning child could do nothing to save itself: however much it struggled in the water it must soon have gone to the bottom, had not one far stronger than itself come in time to save it from death. And so, none of us could be saved unless Jesus had come to die for sinners. Even little children, who are not old enough to know right from wrong, are born with an evil nature, but are saved because Jesus died for them.

Secondly; as the father and the son together saved the drowning child, this reminds us of two verses in the Bible, which tell us that God “gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16) and that He “spared not His own Son.” (Rom. 8:32) for the salvation of sinners.

Dear children, make haste and come to Jesus to be saved.

ML 12/02/1900

A Little Pilgrim.

Father, I’m but a little child,

I know not how to go,

I cannot take a step for Thee,

Except Thy word I know.

I would be led, and taught by Thee,

The narrow path to tread;

Would follow in the steps of Him,

Who suffered in my stead.

I would Thy will now seek to do;

For Thee each day to live

In every virtue, good and true—

I ask Thee, grace to give.

Jesus, the perfect pattern, Thou,

I’d copy after Thee;

The eye of faith would upward turn,

While Thou dost strengthen me.

Then may I spend the little time,

While waiting Thy return,

In speaking of Thy love and power,

Which cause my heart to burn.

A little pilgrim, sent to tell,

The message of Thy love;

The grace of God to man and child.

Good tidings from above.

ML 12/02/1900

"Their Angels Do Always Behold the Face of My Father Which Is in Heaven."

WE have before us, in our picture today the faces of two little girls. They both have a sober, thoughtful expression, and I think it would be difficult to imagine what they are thinking about. But if we do not know what their thoughts are, we know that God is thinking with thoughts of love about the little folks such as our picture represents. He watches tenderly and carefully over them and sends His angels to minister to them, as well as to all who “shall be heirs of salvation.”

Angels are the ministers of God’s power; they “excel in strength.” Did you ever think of how great the power of an angel is, and how wonderful his strength? God once sent an angel against a mighty host that had encamped about the cities of Judah. Hezekiah, the king, was much frightened when this great army came into his kingdom, but he was one who feared God and knew His power, and he prayed to God, telling Him all about the matter. Let me tell you how God answered that prayer; He sent an angel in the night to the Assyrian army, and that angel slew in one night 185,000 men. Does not that speak of mighty power? Would you like to think that beings of such power are about you, guarding you and keeping watch over your steps? If you will turn to the ninety first Psalm and read it carefully you will see that God gives His angels charge over those who make the Lord their refuge, and such are kept in all their ways. Is not this most blessed?

You who love the Lord Jesus are perhaps preserved from dangers that you will not know about until in the presence of Jesus, all is told out. And perhaps you have been preserved when danger threatened, or if hurt, your injury has not been so severe as at the time it seemed as if it must be.

“The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them.”

Ps. 30:7. Isn’t it beautiful.

I once read of a man who fell over a precipice in the great Alpine Mountains. His comrades thought he would certainly be dashed to pieces, but on reaching him by a circuitous route down the mountain side, they found him rejoicing in God who had granted him a marvelous deliverance.

Speaking of the little ones Jesus tells us “Their angels do always behold the face of My Father which is in heaven.”

Is it not happy to know that God sends such powerful and wonderful beings to protect and care for His own?

ML 12/09/1900

Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath.

THERE are many places in the Old Testament where the Sabbath is mentioned. It means a day of test, and is referred to in Gen. 2:2,3, which speaks of God finishing all His work, and then resting on the seventh day. In Exod. 16:26, the seventh day is called the Sabbath, and in verse 23, the day is called, “the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord.”

When God finished creation, He rested on the seventh day; but sin came in and spoiled God’s rest. God is love, and love could not rest when man was suffering; and so God began to work again, in order to bring about the deliverance of His fallen creatures.

When God brought Israel out of Egypt, delivering them from their cruel bondage under Pharaoh, there was given a type of redemption—that work of Christ which is to bring in eternal rest for God and man in the new heavens and the new earth; and in connection with this God gave the Sabbath as a type of that eternal rest which remains for the people of God.

In Exod. 31:12-18, we get the special meaning of the Sabbath for Israel. God gave to Israel the Ten Commandments, and put the Sabbath in as one of them, which was to be a special sign between Him and them. If they kept His covenant He would give them rest; but if they broke His covenant they would perish. And in this Scripture it is said, “Whosoever doeth any work on the Sabbath day shall surely be put to death.” This is indeed very solemn, when we remember that they broke the covenant, and finally put to death the Son of man, who was Lord of the Sabbath. The result is that Israel, as a nation, has been scattered for nearly nineteen centuries. But by and by God will have mercy upon Israel, and will bring them to repentance. He will then gather them back to their own land, and will make a new covenant with them, forgiving their sins through the blood of Jesus, and writing the law in their hearts. Then they will keep His Sabbaths, and enjoy His blessing in the land of Canaan.

In the meantime, while Israel is scattered, the Lord of the Sabbath has also set aside that which was the sign of His covenant with them. Those who now believe the Gospel are called Christians, and God has not placed them under the covenant which He made with Israel, and so they have nothing to do with the seventh day Sabbath. Instead of this we find in the New Testament the first day of the week marked off in a special way. The first day in the week is the day on which Jesus rose from the dead, the day on which the Holy Ghost came down—the day of Pentecost, the day on which Christians came together to break bread, and it is called the Lord’s day, See Lev. 23; John 20; Acts 20:7; Rev. 1:10.

The first day of the week, then, is the day that we as Christians observe unto the Lord. It is not called the Sabbath, but the Lord’s day. There is “the Lord’s supper,” and “the Lord’s day;” and believers observe the Lord’s supper on the Lord’s day.

Now, dear children, do you not think it would be very bad if any one treated the Lord’s supper just as they would any other supper? I am sure you must think so. And is it not just as bad if people treat the Lord’s day like any other day? Yes, it is just as bad. The Lord Jesus claims the day and the supper as His, and we must not abuse what is His. It would be very wrong for us to go on with our work on that day the same as other days, and for boys and girls to take the Lord’s day for play and pleasure-seeking. We need first to own Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, and then observe the Lord’s day unto Him.

ML 12/09/1900

Brave Benjamin.

ONCE on a time I was in North Wales, and was fond of getting on some mountain to enjoy the fine scenery below my feet, while in the distance the great ocean stretched far as the eye could reach, till sky and waves seemed to mingle. Sometimes I would wander amid the solitude of the hills, or amid the ruins of by-gone ages, where the silence was alone broken by the busy little waterfall in its leapings over the jutting rocks as though eager to gain the broad river that wound among the valleys in a serpent-like course. But I was once looking from the bridge that crosses the Menai Strait, admiring the grandeur of the scenery around me from its giddy height. Leisurely looking on the water below, and watching the steamboats with their loads of sightseers as they left a path of foam behind them, I was at last attracted by some boats that lay along-side a little landing place, and while looking from one object to another, I saw two little boys get into a boat, and, loosing the rope that held it to the moorings, the bigger of the two gave a push and the boat drifted slowly away. The mischievous boys were “just going to have a ride.” For a few minutes they rolled about, and this made the boat go farther away; the tide was fast ebbing as well, and this made the boat speed farther from the landing stage. The boys now looked about them for the oars, intending to pull back I suppose, but there were none. I could see by their manner that the poor lads were frightened, and as they found they were now being borne away towards the bay of Carnarvon, and then on to the great wide sea, they set up a shout. I felt frightened too, as I saw the helpless boys drifting rapidly down farther and farther away. No other boats appeared to be at hand just then. But to my joy and surprise I saw an unexpected deliverer. A lad about fourteen, I think he was, saw the danger of the boys, threw off his jacket and boots, and without hesitation plunged in. He was evidently a good swimmer, and seemed quite at home in the waves, and the brave little fellow struck out boldly towards the boat. It was a breathless time as I watched his progress. The frightened boys, too, saw him coming, and I think I can tell how they felt at such a time. Ben, the boat boy, at last gained the boat side, and telling the boys to get on one side, he got in at the other. He was well up to his work, or he would have capsized the boat. He was not long in turning it around. It seemed to me as if he used one of the foot boards to paddle it back.

As soon as I saw the boys safely landed, I went on my way. I had no doubt brave Ben got his reward. I am sure he must have felt happy in delivering the poor boys from their danger. I could not help turning my thoughts to Him who had delivered me from a worse danger than that, when, as giddy and thoughtless as the boys, I was going on my way, and the precious text came to my mind, “He loved me and gave Himself for me.” I dare say a good many of my little readers can say this from their heart.

ML 12/09/1900

"They That Were Ready."

IT was a summer evening. Two children who had been amusing themselves in different ways for some hours, had grown tired of their games, and had sat down to rest. They were brother and sister, and were always together, either at lessons or at play. As I have said, they were tired of playing, and tired, too, of being alone. Their father and mother were out that evening, they had gone with others to read the word of God together, and in this way to hear of Jesus, God’s own beloved Son, who had come many years ago to die on the cross for men, women and children.

It was growing late, and these children were becoming anxious at their parents being so long away. “I wonder why Father and Mother do not come,” said the sister to her brother.

“I don’t know,” said the brother.

“Do you think the Lord Jesus can have come and taken them away?” the boy asked. Their fears increased, for though these children had heard of Jesus, they did not know Him. Do you know Jesus dear young reader? Well, this boy and girl did not.

At last a bright thought struck them, and Emma, for that was the little girl’s name, said to her brother, “Harry, let us go over and see if Mrs. H. is at home. You know she loves the Lord Jesus, so that if He has come He will have taken her up to heaven.”

So over they went and rang the bell, and when the maid came to the door, they asked if Mrs. H. was at home. Great was their relief when they found she was still there, and they went back home with thankful hearts, and soon their father and mother returned, and the children told them how frightened they had, been because they thought the Lord had come.

Why were they frightened? Because they were not ready. Dear child, are you?

I want you to get your Bible, and read for yourself what the Lord Jesus says in the 25th chapter of Matthew and the 10th verse, as to those that “were ready.” “They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage; and the door was shut.”

You see, they that were “ready” were shut in with Jesus; they were safe and happy forever. But what about those who were not ready. They came after the door was shut, and said, “Lord, Lord, open to us.” Did they get in? No, no, the Lord answered, “I know you not.” and they were shut out.

Dear reader, young or old, which will be your portion? Shut in, or shut out? Jesus says, “Behold I come quickly” It is not likely that every one where you and I live will die tonight, or tomorrow, but Christ may come! He has said, “I will come again.” He “was once offered to bear the sins of many.” Jesus came into this world to die “once.” He is coming again to take all who have put their trust in Him to Himself, and the door will be shut. Where, dear young readers, will you be? Outside, or shut in with Jesus? Which? It must be one or the other, and that for eternity.

ML 12/09/1900

The First Flight.

SEE the little bird that has left the nest, and is trying to fly! Its claws are drawn in, and its wings are only half spread, and it seems to be going down instead of up; but soon, perhaps, the wings will stretch out and begin to flap, and the little bird, beginning to realize its power, will mount upward. Or maybe it will go quite down to the ground, and have to try again and again before it will succeed in its upward flight, for little birds have to learn to fly, just as little boys and girls have to learn to walk.

How eagerly the mother bird, and perhaps the little brother, seated on the edge of the nest, watch the little one that has gone out, as it seems to hover in the air. They look as if they felt the deepest interest; and the little one so wide awake may soon follow. The other little one in the nest looks up at its mother, as if to say: “I wouldn’t like to try that.” The other two seem to be cooing to each other, not thinking at all that they, too, will have to fly, though one of them looks like one of the old birds.

Sometimes little birds do not like to leave their soft, warm nests; they would rather stay where they are, than exert themselves to fly; but this will not do, for the time will come when they, too, must leave the nest.

Now, dear little readers of this paper, do you think you should learn to fly? I fancy I hear some of you saying: “Oh, I never could do that!” And it is quite true that you cannot fly with your bodies; but let me tell you how you can fly: If you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you can learn to fly, “in spirit,” above the things of this world. Suppose someone would say to you, “There’s no harm in going to see the show, it’s ever so nice;” and you could answer, “The show belongs to the world, and I cannot go to it, for God says,

“Whosoever will be a friend of the world, is the enemy of God.” Jas. 4:4.

Ah! then you are learning to soar in spirit above things of the world.

Do you not think it is pleasant to see the birds as they flit about here and there through the air? How light they are! How swiftly they go! And do you not think that your fight in spirit above the things of the world—its pleasures, its amusements, its vanities—would be a much happier sight? Maybe you think this is a flight that would not be seen! No, no, God sees, and knows all you give up for Him; and people see, too, when you turn away from the ways of the world, to please the Lord; and it is a beautiful testimony—far more beautiful than the flight of the little bird.

People with their comfortable homes and nice surroundings, who do not care for the heavenly things, are like the little birds who do not wish to leave their soft, warm nests. But suppose a storm should come and blow the nest away! Then the little birds that have refused to learn to fly, would be dashed to the ground and killed. So it will be with those who are “lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God,” when the storm of God’s wrath will come upon this poor world; they will be thrown out of their comfortable nests, and they will perish.

Come, then—come now, to Jesus! and, knowing Him, seek strength to fly—that is, to rise in spirit above these things that are of the world. It will prove a blessed flight, whose terminus will be that happy home where there will be no more going out.

ML 12/16/1900

A Voice From the Trees.

IF the children will keep me company, we will take a little journey together into the fields of Scripture to learn there some important, and I trust, profitable lessons, which the trees may teach us. We may also find, as we note the various differences in the nature of the trees, as they were first planted, and continue to grow upon the earth by the hand of a merciful and faithful Creator, that they speak to us in many ways, as illustrations, which God permits and encourages us to consider.

The first tree to which we shall go for instruction will be the “Almond.” And, if we open our Bibles, we shall find in Jer. 1:11,12.

“Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.

Then said the Lord unto me, thou hast well seen; for I will hasten My word to perform it.”

Now, it is interesting to know that the word “Almond,” means “hasten”; and so we see how the Lord could show Jeremiah that He was about to “hasten His word” when he was looking at the rod of an almond tree before him. But the word that God was about to hasten to perform at this time, when Jeremiah lived, was one of the most solemn warnings to His backsliding people—the Jews —of the judgment He was soon to bring upon them. But the people would not listen to the prophet’s voice, but set their faces against him, and turned their ears away from him.

The judgment, however, overtook them, as God is always faithful to His word, and they were carried as captives, away from their own land to Babylon.

It is just the same today, dear readers, for only a few people really believe what the Bible says about the judgment that is soon to come upon this world. If they did believe it, don’t you think they would immediately flee to Jesus, as a refuge, from the wrath to come?

But, now, turn with me to another Scripture, where the word “hasten,” occurs, and then I shall leave you to think over the little talk we have had, until another time when, I trust, the Lord will permit us again to speak of these precious things.

The Scripture I refer to, you will find in Proverbs 19:2: “Also that the soul be without knowledge it is not good: and he that ‘hasteth’ with his feet sinneth.” You remember what Jesus said about the prodigal (Luke 15.) leaving his father’s house of plenty, and his return to that home from a field of famine. He meant that as a picture of you and me. But let us ask: What is it to “hasten with the feet”? “It is taking only a single step away from God.” As soon as the feet of that son had crossed the threshold of his father’s door, he was “sinning”; he was on his wayward and downward course which leads to everlasting destruction.

He was lost!

But you know he came back again, being very sorry for having sinned so grievously against that dear and loving father. And where did the father meet his returning child? At the door of the house which he had left? No, the father hastened (“ran”) to meet him, while as yet, the son was in the field of the far country.

Remember, then, that while we have hastened to get away from God, He has, also, hastened to meet us, if we have, indeed, turned our faces towards Him, as lost and helpless ones.

ML 12/16/1900

The Message Rejected.

NOT long ago some of the Lord’s servants went into a certain district to preach the gospel of God’s free grace. The gospel, you know, is God’s glad tidings to poor sinners, and it tells them how to be saved from hell, and is sent to young and old. It tells them that God has provided a Saviour, who died on the cross for all, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Oh, how such a gracious message, direct from God Himself, should be received joyfully and without delay!

But I want to tell you how some of these people carelessly rejected God’s message. One afternoon, when these servants of the Lord were preaching, a man with a pet bear was seen about a block away land a number of the people left the meeting and ran to see the bear. One night there was a foolish entertainment, going on, and nearly all went to it. These people will be sorry for this someday, and we fear with many it may be at a time when it is too late to have their precious, never-dying souls saved. How sad that people would allow anything to get in between their souls and God.

Possibly some of the dear young readers of this paper have never thought what a solemn thing it is to trifle with God and His message of love. There are many children, and grown people too, all over this wide world, who are being led captive by Satan, and are slighting God’s offer of pardon through faith in Jesus’ blood. The Lord Jesus says: “Come unto Me.” What a blessed invitation! The one who turns to the world and its pleasures, or sin of any kind, is really turning his back upon God, and His beloved Son. This, dear children, is a terrible thing, and it will surely bring God’s judgment very soon. But before God punishes, He always sends a warning first. And now I will close this little message with one warning from God’s word: “See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused Him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven.” Heb. 12:25.

ML 12/16/1900

Never to Be Opened.

THERE was, many years ago, in Germany, a countess, who, refused to believe that there is a God, or a resurrection, or of a judgment to come. She was so anxious to show her unbelief that she caused to be prepared an extremely strong tomb, made of massive blocks of hard stone, joined together with great pieces of iron. Man’s utmost power was put forth to render it impossible to open this tomb when it should once be properly closed. On the heavy slab which formed the lid, or cover, were engraved the following words; “This burial place, purchased to all eternity, must never be opened.”

But “the weakness of God is stronger than man.” What could be weaker than a tiny seed decaying in the soil? Well, the countess died, and was buried in her tomb, and such a seed found its way in with the moulds. Soon it sent out a tiny shoot, which by degrees, forced its way between the side stone and the upper slab. Slowly but steadily it grew larger and larger, until at length the iron fastenings were burst asunder, and the heavy lid was uplifted. And today, we are told, that that countess’ grave may be seen, with the massive cover and side-stones resting against the trunk of a tall tree, which grows up from the midst of the open tomb! “There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel against the Lord.” See Exodus 3:14; John 8:58; Acts 24:15, Heb. 9:27, and Prov. 21:30.

ML 12/16/1900

Have You Sinned?

ONE night, a young lady, who had lust returned from a fashionable party, was being attended to by her waiting maid, who was a child of God. She longed to see her young mistress enjoying the same rest which she enjoyed —peace with God through her Lord Jesus Christ, and Christ as her new object in life. So she ventured to tell her mistress what the Lord had done for her, and expressing a wish to see her rejoicing in the same blessings.

Her mistress answered, “Grace, do not speak to me like that. It is all right for you, you needed to be con, verted. I have been brought up in the fold. I am one of the ninety and nine who never went astray.”

What a delusion! when God has said, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Rom. 3:23.

There is no salvation for good people.

“The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.

ML 12/16/1900

Not Too Young to Serve.

A correspondent with the army in the Franco-Prussian War was one evening returning to his quarters, when he met a little boy not more than nine years old, fully equipped as a soldier—uniform, knapsack, and helmet, all complete. The boy stopped and asked him the way to the Town Commandant’s office.

“What on earth are you!” asked the correspondent, amused at his strange appearance.

The little soldier drew himself up to his fullest height, and saluting, answered, “I am a soldier in the 61St regiment and want orders.”

The correspondent lifted him on to his saddle and carried him straight to headquarters, where he was well cared for, and became the favorite of the army, as he had been the pet of his regiment.

This boy was not ashamed of his profession, and did not consider himself too young to serve. He showed his colors at once. Yet how many children there are who, if asked if they belong to Jesus, would hang down their heads, and be ashamed to answer, “Yes!” If you are His, don’t be ashamed to own Him, where ever you go. There are many ways, too, in which you may serve Him, for He has said that even a cup of cold water given in His name, shall have a reward.

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do. do it with thy might. Eccl. 9:10.

ML 12/16/1900

An Unheeded Warning.

IN 18—, the late Mr. and Mrs. F who were lost in August, 18—, on board the Rothesay Castle steam packet, were acquainted with three sisters residing in London, who belonged to the higher class of society. Two of them were decidedly pious, but the third was just the contrary and extremely volatile. They were all advanced in life, which rendered the gaiety of the third the less becoming, and also inclined her the more easily to take offence at any remarks made upon it. She hated the piety of her sisters, and opposed it in a very petty and spiteful manner, though they endeavored to accommodate themselves to her wishes, and to render the difference between them as little disagreeable as possible.

One night, towards the close of 18—, she had been at an assembly very late, and the next morning, at breakfast, her behavior was so remarkably different from her usual manner, that the sisters feared she was very unwell, or had met with some misfortune which deeply affected her. Instead of her incessant chat about every person she had met, and everything she had seen, and all that had been said and done, she sat sullen, silent, and absorbed.

As she ate nothing, her sisters asked her if she were not well.

She answered, “No.” “What is the matter?” “Nothing.”

They were afraid something had distressed her. She said, “I have no idea of people prying into matters that do not concern them.”

The whole of the morning was passed alone by her in her own room, and at dinner time the same conduct recurred as in the morning; she scarcely ate anything, never spoke, except when she answered, in an uncivil way, whatever was asked her, and all with an appearance of depression, obstinacy, and melancholy, that spread its influence very painfully over the cheerfulness of her companions.

She retired to rest late, and with the air of one who expects from sleep neither alleviation nor refreshment.

The next morning she scarcely touched her breakfast, and seemed in the same oppressed and uncomfortable state as the preceding day. One of her affectionate sisters again addressed her, “Anna, you are not well; is it your head that pains you?”

She answered, “I am well, and nothing pains me.”

“Then you have something on your mind, and will you not tell us? Do we not love you? Have we not the same earthly interests with you, and can we seek any good but yours, in an anxious wish to share your sorrows?”

“Oh, you have superstition enough of your own, without more being added. I shall not tell you what ails me, so you have no occasion to press any further your curiosity. I daresay you would be delighted to know it, for you would think it some spiritual triumph; but I laugh at these things, I am not quite old enough yet to become the victim of dreams and visions.”

“Anna, we do not live in dreams and visions.”

She answered sharply, “No, and I do not mean that you should.” The sisters looked at each other, and relapsed into silence.

The second day passed as the first; Anna was gloomy and moody, and her sisters, both from pity and anxiety, were unhappy for her sake. The third morning she again began the day as one who loathed the light, who had no interest in existence, and to whom the lapse of time and the prospects of eternity brought neither peace nor hope. As her sisters looked at her, one of them suddenly said, “Anna, what was your dream?”

She started and laughed wildly. “Ah! Oh! what was it indeed? you would give the world to know, but I shall not tell you. I thought you did not believe in dreams and visions.”

The sisters replied, “Nor do we in general; you know they are usually the offspring of a disordered mind, confused images, and fancies, whilst reason is dormant: and the remembrance of them usually passes away the moment that we are fairly engaged in our usual occupation. But there are, no doubt, dreams which are as much sent from God as are our afflictions, or any other warning. There is a verse in the Bible where it mentions God as speaking to a man in a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon man.”

She laughed again and said, “You have verses in the Bible for everything that suits your purpose, but I do not choose to be warned by you in such a way; and I have no doubt but I shall get it out of my head in a day or two.”

“Anna, we do beseech you to tell us; if you really have had a dream from heaven, you surely would not wish to forget it; and if not, we will help you to laugh it off.”

She answered in a sulky mood, “Well, if you must know it, you must. No doubt it was very extraordinary. I should have thought it the effect of the ball, but that I never anywhere saw anything resembling it, and you must not suppose that you can understand what I am going to say, for you never saw, nor can imagine, anything like it:—

The Dream.

I thought that I was walking in the wide street of a great city; many people were walking there besides myself, but there was something in their air that immediately struck me; they seemed thoughtful, yet cheerful, neither occupied with business nor with gaiety, but having about them such dignity of repose, such high settled purpose, such peace and such purity, as were never stamped upon a mortal brow. The light of the city was also strange; it was not the sun, for there was nothing to dazzle; it was not the moon, for all was clear-as noon-day; it seemed an atmosphere of calm, lovely, and changeless light.

As I looked at the buildings, they all seemed like palaces, but not like the palaces of earth. The pavement that I walked on, and the houses that I saw, were all alike of gold, bright and shining, and as clear as glass. The large and glittering windows seemed like divided rainbows, and were made to receive and remit nothing but the light of gladness; it was, indeed, a place where hope might lead, where love might dwell. I could not help crying, as I went along, “Surely these are the habitations of righteousness, and truth and peace!” All was beauty, bright, and perfectness. I could not tell what was wanting to make me wish for eternity in such a place, and yet its very purity oppressed me. I saw nothing congenial, though looks of love and kindness met me in every face of that happy throng. I felt nothing responsive, and walked on, all alone, in the midst of the crowd, oppressed and sad. I saw that they all went one way and I followed, wondering at the reason; and at length I saw them all cross over to one building, much larger and finer than the rest. I saw them ascend its massive steps, and enter beneath its ample porch. I felt no desire to go with them, but I approached as far as the steps, out of curiosity. I saw persons enter who were dressed in every variety of color, and in the costumes of all nations; but they disappeared within the porch, and then I saw them cross the hall all in white. Oh! that I could describe to you that hall! It was not crystal—it was not marble—it was not gold, but light, pure light, consolidated into form; it was the moon without her coldness; it was the sun without his dazzling rays; and within was a staircase mounting upwards all of light, and I saw it touched by the moving feet, and by the white, spotless garments of those who ascended it; it was indeed passing fair, but it made me shudder and turn away. As I turned, I saw one on the lower step looking at me with an interest so intense, and a manner so anxious, that I stopped to hear what he had to say; he spoke like liquid music, and asked me,—

“Why do you turn away? Is there such a place elsewhere? Is there pleasure in the walks of darkness?”

I stood in silence; he pressed me to enter, but I neither answered nor moved. Suddenly he disappeared, and another took his place with the same look and the same manner; I wished to avoid him, but I stood rivetted to the spot.

“Art thou come so far,” he said, “and wilt thou lose thy labor? Put off thine own garments, and take the white livery.”

Here he continued to press me, until I got weary and angry, and said,—

“I will not enter; I do not like your livery; and I am oppressed with your whiteness.” He sighed, and was gone.

ML 12/23/1900

He Waited Too Long.

NOW, children, I wish to tell you of a young man, who thought that he would like to be saved, but was waiting until he would have a more convenient time.

This young man was a school-teacher in a country school; he was moral and honest in every way, and was liked by his pupils.

He had one pupil who knew the Lord Jesus as his Saviour, and this pupil desired much to let his teacher know of Jesus and His love to him.

At last the opportunity came, for he was called upon to write an essay, and was allowed to choose his own subject. He chose the words “Ye must be born again,” and sought to show that although one might be moral and honest, that was not enough; to be born again it would be necessary to accept Jesus as the Saviour; and that now, for there was great danger in delay. On returning the essay, the teacher told the pupil it was very good, but said he did not wish to be saved now, he would wait until he could be a good Christian; but he expected to be saved some day. Now, that is what many people think, children, and perhaps you have thought so too; but God would not have us to think that we may be saved some time in the future. He tells us that “now is the accepted time” and “now is the day of salvation.” Satan says, “Put it off.” God says, “Believe now.” Whom shall we obey? I hope you will all say, “Obey God.”

Well, this young man waited too long, I fear. He went away afterwards on his vacation, and soon word was sent, that after a short illness he had died. Nothing was said about his having believed in Jesus. Do you not see from this, children, that it is not good to say “put it off.” That is Satan’s way of deceiving you. Trust in Jesus NOW, and be happy. He wants the children to come to Him, for He loves them and died on the cross to save them.

“There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Prov. 16:25.

ML 12/23/1900

The Place of Safety.

A SCOTCH gentleman was lately walking through his fields when he heard, the cries of a bird apparently in distress. Looking up, he saw a lark hotly pursued by a hawk, which by a series of fierce dashes tried to secure his prey; but the lark was for a time successful in evading the attacks. The hawk however was gaining the mastery, and the lark, terror stricken, seeing the man below, came down like an arrow, and fluttered actually inside the man’s coat, where it cowered, trembling, in his bosom. The hawk followed until within six yards, but seeing what had occurred, he flew off as if in disgust. When the lark was liberated, it soared upward, singing doubtless a song of gratitude to its deliverer.

How safe and happy was the little bird! But not half so safe and happy as those who have fled for refuge from the power of sin, and Satan’s malice, to the Lord Jesus Christ! Of these He says, “They shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand.”

Are you, dear children, in that place of safety? You know how afraid of the man the little bird would naturally have been; but in the presence of a greater danger, its terror overcame its timidity, and it flew to the only place of shelter.

I hope that our dear young readers are able to say, with the Psalmist,

“I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge, and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust.” Ps. 91:2.

ML 12/23/1900

Confidence.

LET us take a little look together at our picture today, dear children. Notice the earnest expression on the face of the old lady, as she is telling the children something which interests them very much. How eagerly they are listening to what their dear grandmother has to say to them, and they know that what she is saying is true, for they have never had reason to doubt her word. Can you look at the picture and not think that the children love their dear grandmother and have confidence in her?

And what lesson can we learn from this? Ah! confidence is a beautiful thing. When we have a friend in whom we can fully trust we are glad to tell this friend about what we have done and what we expect to do; and of what has given us joy or sorrow, and what our wishes and hopes are, and we believe that all he says to us is true. But it is only when we have confidence that we can thus tell out what is in our heart, and trust in what he says.

Now I want to ask you if the Friend above all friends is your Friend. There is a Friend that you can trust perfectly; a Friend who can hear your slightest whisper, and who will not turn away from you if you speak to Him. He will always listen to what you have to say. If you have pain and sorrow, He feels for you in your suffering; if you have comforts and blessings, it is He who gives them to you.

Can you tell me who this dear Friend is? I think you will all be ready to answer—Jesus. And that is right. I hope you will listen to all that He has to say to you in His word, and when you have learned to know Jesus as your Saviour, you will then learn to know Him as your Friend; and a very precious Friend He is— “A Friend that stieketh closer than a brother”!

I hope you will “tell Jesus” about everything that concerns you, giving Him the full confidence of your hearts; then you will have sweet peace.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee; because he trusteth in Thee.” Isa. 26:3.

ML 12/30/1900

An Unheeded Warning.

MANY passers-by looked at me with mingled pity and kindness, and pressed me to follow with them; but I rejected them all, and stood melancholy and disturbed. At length, one young, bright messenger, stationed on the steps, came up to me and entreated me to enter, with a voice and a manner I could not resist. “Do not turn,” he said; “where canst thou go? Do not linger, for why shouldst thou weary thyself for naught? Enter here and taste happiness. Do not all go in, and are any rejected? Do not all tribes and colors pass into that hall, and are they not washed, and clothed. and comforted?” He gave me his hand, and I entered the hall along with him: here I was sprinkled with pure water, and a garment of pure white was put upon my shoulders, and I knew not how, but I mounted the bright stairs by the side of my happy guide. Oh, what a light burst upon my sight when I had reached the summit! But mortal words cannot describe it, nor can mortal fancy in any way conceive it. Where are the living sapphires? Where are the glittering stars, that are like the bright radiance, in which I stood? Where are the forms of love, or the looks of love, that breathed in the numerous company that moved around me? I sunk down overpowered and wretched; I crept into a corner and tried to hide himself, for I saw and felt that I had nothing in unison with the blessed inhabitants of such a place.

They moved in a dance to music and to songs that never fell on mortal ear; my guide joined in the rapture, and I was left alone. I saw the tall forms all fair, all bright, in their own ineffable felicity; their songs and looks of gratitude forming the countenances and the differences of each. At length I saw One taller than the rest, and in every way far more fair, far more dignified; more awfully fair, such as surpasses thought; and to Him each eye was turned, and in His face each face was brightened; the songs and dance were in His honor, and all seemed to derive from Him their life and joy.

As I gazed in speechless amazement, one who saw me left the company and came to where I sat, and said, “Why art thou so silent? Come, quickly, unite in the dance and join in the song.” I felt a sudden anger in my heart, and I answered with sharpness, “I will not join in your song, for I know not the tune; and I cannot join in the dance, for I know not the measure.” He sighed. and with a look of most humiliating pity, he resumed his place. About a minute later, another came and addressed me as he had done; and with the same temper I answered him in the same way; he looked as if he could have resigned his own dazzling glory to have changed me. If heaven could have known anguish, he seemed to feel it, but he left me and returned to his place.

What could it be that put such a temper in my heart? At length the Lord of that glorious company of those living, breathing, glittering forms of life, and light, and beauty; of those sounds of harmony, and those songs of triumph, saw me, and came up to speak to me. I thrilled in every part with awe; I felt my blood chill, and my flesh tremble, and yet my heart grew harder, and my voice grew bolder. He spoke, and deep-toned music issued from His lips: “Why sittest thou so still, and all around thee are so glad? Come, join in the dance, for I have triumphed; come, join in the song, for My people reign.” Love unspeakable He seemed to beam upon me, as though it would have melted a heart of stone. I felt it, but melted not; I gazed an instant, and I said, “I will not join in the song, for I know not the tune; and I will not join in the dance, for I know not the measure.” Creation would have fled at the change of His countenance; His glance was lightning; and in a voice louder than ten thousand thunders, He said to me, “Then what doest thou here?” The floor beneath me opened, and I sunk into flames and torments! and with the dreadful fright I awoke.”

There was a momentary silence, for the sisters were shocked and surprised at the dream; and both of them thought that neither the substance of it, nor the deep impression it had made, could be the effects of any natural cause on Anna’s volatile mind.

“Anna,” they said, “we cannot help you to forget such a dream as this. We surely believe that it is from God, and it may be greatly blessed in your soul if you seek it to be so. Your description of the Holy City may be an impression from the word of God, for much the same account is described in the Revelation. ‘The city has no need of the sun, nor the moon, for the temple of God is there, and the Lamb is the light thereof.’ All who enter must put off their garments, and their own righteousness, and then, washed in the blood of Jesus, are seen ‘arrayed in fine linen, clean and white’ (Rev. 19:8); they sing a new song, saying, ‘Thou art worthy . . . . for Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God, kings and priests’ (Rev. 5:9, 10). Oh, Anna, you know something of the way; do give up your own will and listen to this fearful warning! join us, and learn the steps which lead to heaven, and how to sing the songs of Zion.”

Anna’s brow again darkened, and she answered, “I do not want you to preach to me; I shall do as I please.” She continued in this melancholy state to the end of the week, and was found in her room—dead! No one knew the cause of her death. She died without disease of body; she died without any apparent change of mind!

It may be, dear reader, that you who have just read the foregoing narrative, have often been warned of your danger, and urged to turn to the Lord Jesus Christ. But up to this moment both warnings and entreaties have proved in vain. Once more you are warned to flee from the wrath to come; once more you are invited to come to the open arms of the Saviour, Jesus. Once more! we say, yes, once more, and this may be the last warning you will ever have, and the last invitation you will ever receive.

Oh, dear reader, listen to these solemn words, and may it never be said of you: “Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out My hand, and no man regarded; but ye have set at naught all My counsel, and would none of My reproof; I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind: when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon Me, but I will not answer; they shall seek Me early, but they shall not find Me.” (Prov. 1:24-29)

ML 12/30/1900

I'll Trust Him.

F—., when about 14 years of age, became exercised about his condition of soul. He had been taught that those who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, are saved. He thought he believed as much as anybody could believe, but he couldn’t feel that he was saved. As he reasoned in his mind about it, he thought he was not a true believer, or did not believe in the right way, and he began to fear that he was, perhaps, a hypocrite—trying to think himself a Christian, when he was not one at all. The more he thought about these things, the more troubled he became, and doubts and uncertainties filled his mind. The thought of death came before him and filled him with fear; but a dread even stronger than this took possession of him; the Lord might come at any moment, and he was not ready. When he lay down at night, he feared to go to sleep lest the Lord would come in the silent watches to take His people home and he would be left behind.

Months passed on, and this state of anxiety and fear continued. One day F., who was a farmer boy, was out in the field shocking grain. He got some distance in advance of the binder and lay down on the ground a few minutes to wait until it would overtake him. While lying there his thoughts were occupied with the question that had been absorbing him so long. Oh, why can I not know that I am saved? God says in His word, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” I do believe. I believe as much as anybody can. “Believe!” It is God’s word, and God is true—I’ll trust Him. With this thought light came into his soul. He took God at His word, he trusted Him, and he was saved.

How many of my dear little readers are ready thus to take God at His word, and “trust Him?”

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” “Through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him all that believe are justified from all things.” “Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification.” “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.”

ML 12/30/1900

Meeting Christ.

When first of Him you hear,

Perhaps you say, “I fear

To meet Him as I am”;

“O child,” He says, “you need not fear,

I love you, and I want you near,

I’ll meet you as you are.”

Again I hear you say,

“If I but knew the way,

I’d meet Him as I am;”

He answers, “Come, without delay,

I’m the true and living way,

I’ll meet you where you are.”

You say, “I see it now,

For He has showed me how;

By faith, I meet Him here;

I trust His word, I bow the knee,

And wait the time when I shall see

And meet Him in the air.”

ML 12/30/1900

A Word for the Girls.

I was looking at my sister one day, cleaning her fire irons; they had got a little rusty. Well, she got a piece of sand paper and rubbed away, and didn’t leave off till every spot was gone, but I thought they looked rather scratchy. Presently, however, Nancy got a piece of chamois skin, and rubbed away again till all the scratches were gone; and she didn’t stop until she could see her face in them, they were so bright. Ah! I thought, that’s what trials and troubles do for a Christian —they keep the rust of evil away, and keep us bright for Jesus, so that He can see His face in His own work, for He does it.

ML 12/30/1900

Messages of God's Love: 1900

Table of Contents

Answers to Questions of Nov. 5th, 1899.

The Door of Escape.

"Thou God Seest Me."

Animals of the Bible.

Echoes From the Sunday School.

"If This Book Is True, We Are Lost."

Animals of the Bible.

"Behold, I Come Quickly."

A Peep at Some Squirrels.

The Blackbird's Song.

Pardoned.

"I Have His Word for It."

"I Know That 'Whosoever' Means Me."

The Coastguardsman's Little Daughter.

True to Christ

Story of a Sheep, or How to be Useful.

A Word to Children.

Saved From Death.

Answers to Questions of Dec. 3rd, 1899.

"My Word Shall Not Pass Away."

The Coming of the Lord.

Will You Be There?

"O Lucy, Don't Ring!"

A Saviour for You.

Katie's Love.

The Best Time to Come to Jesus.

Nobody Looking

Fall of the Rossberg.

Animals of the Bible.

Inside or Outside?

"I Am Ready! Are You?"

Forty Years Seeking Peace.

Really for Nothing.

Two Mothers.

Echoes from the Sunday School.

Answers to Questions of Jan. 7th, 1900.

Look and Live.

The Bermudas.

One More Chance.

The "Refuge." Are You in It?

The Bermudas.

The Lost Ball.

Scene in a Bermuda Post Office.

The Rainbow.

Jemmy in the Pit.

Our Saviour's Care.

Is It Nothing to You?

"Charlie, the Deaf and Dumb Boy."

Small and Great.

"The Wolf and the Lamb Shall Feed Together."

Answers to Questions of Feb. 4th, 1900.

When the Bee Stung Mother.

The Babe of Bethlehem.

God's Care.

An Incident on the Stagecoach.

The Babe and the Angels.

"With All His Strength."

God's Love and God's Gift.

"May I Be Sure?"

An Incident on the Stagecoach.

A Father's Love.

"We See Jesus Crowned with Glory and Honor." Heb. 2:9.

The Babe and the Shepherds.

My Boy, Here Is a Watch for You.

"How Much Better Is It to Get Wisdom Than Gold!" (Prov 17:16.)

The Babe and Simeon.

The Letter.

Waiting.

"The Wind and the Sea Obey Him."

That Word Eternity.

Black, but Not with Sin.

"Not Afraid to Die."

Jesus Loves You.

The Babe and Old Anna.

Bible Questions for May.

The Sun.

The Bible.

The Babe and the Wise Men from the East.